pái duì
queue up; line up
我在银行排队等候。
wǒ zài yínháng páiduì děnghòu.
I am waiting in line at the bank.
排队的人很多。
páiduì de rén hěn duō.
There are many people in line.
请排队等候。
qǐng páiduì děnghòu.
Please wait in line.
排队 (páiduì)
queue
等候 (děnghòu)
wait in line
插队 (chā duì)
cut in line
乱序 (luàn xù)
disorder
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The Chinese word 排队 (pái duì) for "to queue" or "to line up" is composed of two characters: 排 (pái) and 队 (duì). The character 排 (pái) originally meant "to arrange in order" or "to put in a row". It is composed of the radical 扌 (shǒu), which indicates that the character is related to hand or action, and the phonetic component 旁 (páng), which is a simplified form of the character 旁 (páng), meaning "side" or "beside". The character 队 (duì) originally meant "a group of people or things arranged in a row". It is composed of the radical 人 (rén), which indicates that the character is related to people, and the phonetic component 对 (duì), which is a simplified form of the character 对 (duì), meaning "to face" or "to confront". When combined, the characters 排 (pái) and 队 (duì) form the word 排队 (pái duì), which literally means "to arrange people in a row" or "to put people in a line", hence its meaning of "to queue" or "to line up".
