héng
horizontal
他横过马路,差点被车撞了。
tā héngguò mǎlù, chàdiǎn bèi chē zhuàngle.
He crossed the road and was almost hit by a car.
这条河横贯整个城市。
zhè tiáo hé héngguàn zhěnggè chéngshì.
This river runs through the entire city.
他横眉冷对,一副不高兴的样子。
tā héngméi lěngduì, yīfù bù gāoxìng de yàngzi.
He frowned and looked unhappy.
横向 (héngxiàng)
horizontal
横行 (héngxíng)
run rampant
竖 (shù)
vertical
直 (zhí)
straight
The Chinese character 横 (héng) is composed of two parts: the radical 彳 (chì), which represents walking or stepping, and the phonetic component 工 (gōng), which represents work or labor. The character 横 originally meant "to walk sideways" or "to go across," but over time it has come to mean "horizontal," "transverse," or "across."The character 横 can be used in a variety of contexts. For example, it can be used to describe the direction of something (e.g., 横向发展 héngxiàng fāzhǎn "horizontal development"), the shape of something (e.g., 横条纹 héngtiáowén "horizontal stripes"), or the position of something (e.g., 横卧 héngwò "lying down horizontally"). It can also be used figuratively to describe something that is unexpected or unusual (e.g., 横空出世 héngkōng chūshì "to appear out of nowhere").The character 横 is also used in a number of idioms and proverbs. For example, the idiom 横行霸道 héngxíng bàdào means "to act in a domineering and oppressive manner," while the proverb 人无横财不富,马无夜草不肥 rén wú héngcái bù fù, mǎ wú yècǎo bù féi means "a person cannot become rich without ill-gotten wealth, just as a horse cannot become fat without eating grass at night."Overall, the character 横 is a versatile character that can be used in a variety of contexts. It is an important character to learn for HSK learners, as it is used frequently in both written and spoken Chinese.
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