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面谈 (miàn tán) — (verb) to discuss face to face; (noun) a face-to-face meeting or interview

Definition

面谈 is a formal compound verb/noun meaning a face-to-face talk, usually a scheduled or official interview. 比 "见面" more focused on the discussion purpose; 比 "会谈" shorter in scale.

verb
to discuss face to face
noun
a face-to-face meeting or interview
Measure word · 次

Examples

  • 面谈。
    Wǒ men zuì hǎo zhǎo gè shí jiān miàn tán yí cì.
    We'd better find a time to discuss face to face.
  • 面谈。
    Míng tiān de miàn tán ān pái zài xià wǔ sān diǎn.
    Tomorrow's face-to-face meeting is scheduled for 3 PM.
  • 面谈。
    Jīng lǐ yāo qiú yǔ kè hù jìn xíng miàn tán.
    The manager requested a face-to-face discussion with the client.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

面miànface
谈tántalk

面 gives face-to-face and 谈 gives talking, so the word means to discuss in person.

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 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 談; 谈 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánspeech
Sound part声符shēngfú
炎
炎yán談tán
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

For 谈, the traditional form 談 pairs 言 (speech) with 炎 (yán) as the sound part.

Open 谈 →
Appears in
Communication & Speech

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