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面临 (miàn lín) — to face, to be confronted with

Definition

Use 面临 for serious, often external situations (pressure, danger, choice) one must deal with. 面对 is more neutral and everyday; 正视 is to face something squarely and acknowledge it honestly.

verb
to faceto be confronted with

Examples

  • 面临。
    Wǒ men miàn lín yí gè zhòng yào de xuǎn zé.
    We face an important choice.
  • 面临。
    Gōng sī miàn lín jù dà de yā lì.
    The company is under huge pressure.
  • 面临。
    Tā miàn lín kùn nan shí cóng bú fàng qì.
    She never gives up when facing difficulties.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

面miànto face
临línto confront

Both 面 and 临 mean to face or confront, so 面临 describes being confronted by something.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

面 originally drew a man’s face, with one eye exaggerated; the horizontal stroke was added later.

Open 面 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 臨; 临 is its simplified writing.

For the traditional form 臨, 人 is a person, 臣 is an eye, and 品 is objects, showing a person looking down at objects.

Open 临 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5HSK 2.0 Level 55000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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