中午 zhōngwǔ — midday, noon

Meanings

1. 1

   midday, noon

   The middle of the day, roughly from twelve to two. It is the usual time for the main meal and, in schools and offices, for a rest.

   noun

Character breakdown

• 中

  zhōng (first tone, high and level) zhòng (fourth tone, falling)

  middle, centre; in, among, within; China (in 中国); (zhòng) to hit the mark, to be hit by

  4 strokes⿻口丨Radical 丨

Example sentences

• 中午我不回家。Zhōngwǔ (first tone, high and level) wǒ (third tone, dipping) bù (fourth tone, falling) huí (second tone, rising) jiā. (first tone, high and level)···

  I don’t go home at lunchtime.

• 中午十二点了，我们去吃饭。/中午十二點了，我們去吃飯。Zhōngwǔ (first tone, high and level) shí (second tone, rising) èr (fourth tone, falling) diǎn (third tone, dipping) le, (neutral tone) wǒmen (third tone, dipping) qù (fourth tone, falling) chīfàn. (first tone, high and level)···

  It’s twelve o’clock — let’s go and eat.

Similar words

Words containing 中

• 中国/中國Zhōngguó (first tone, high and level)China
• 中间/中間zhōngjiān (first tone, high and level)the middle, in between
• 中文Zhōngwén (first tone, high and level)Chinese (the language, especially written)