关门
guān mén
The English phrase 'close the door' is translated into Chinese as 关门 (guān mén).
The phrase is used to describe the physical action of moving a door so that it is shut. In a commercial context, however, 关门 can also mean that a shop or business is closing for the day or closing down permanently.
What does it mean word for word?
关 (guān) means 'to close' or 'to shut', and 门 (mén) means 'door' or 'gate'.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
To make the phrase a polite request rather than a command, you can add 请 (qǐng) to the beginning of the sentence to say 请关门.
How do you pronounce it?
guān mén
Did you know?
- While 关门 means to close a door, the phrase 关心 (guān xīn) uses the same 'close' character to mean 'to care for' or 'be concerned about'.
- The word 门 (door) is used in the idiom 门当户对, which describes a marriage between two families of equal social status and wealth.
- The character 关 (close) can also mean 'pass' or 'checkpoint' when used in different contexts, such as a mountain pass or a stage in a video game.
Examples in context
- 请关门。Close the door, please.This example is useful for learning how to make a polite request using 关门.Tatoeba #396001 by GlossaMatik, translation #38524 by CK
- 关门。Close the door.This example shows how to use 关门 as a direct command.Tatoeba #472970 by fucongcong, translation #405379 by brauliobezerra
- 关门，上课了 (guān mén, shàng kè le)Close the door, class is starting.
- 进屋后请记得关门。Jìn wū hòu qǐng jìde guānmén.Please remember to close the door after entering the room.
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
浩然 is leaving the room and 雨婷 is working inside.
- 雨婷 Yuting浩然，别忘了关门。Hàorán, bié wàngle guānmén.Haoran, don't forget to close the door.
- 浩然 Haoran好的，我这就去关门。Hǎo de, wǒ zhè jiù qù guānmén.Okay, I will go close the door now.
- 雨婷 Yuting谢谢你。Xièxiè nǐ.Thank you.
- 浩然 Haoran不客气。Bù kèqì.You're welcome.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
