城

• Pinyin: chéng
• Hanzi breakdown: 城 = 土 (earth) + 成 (to complete, phonetic), originally meaning an earthen defensive wall around a city

Meaning

City; city wall; town. Originally referring to a walled city, now commonly used to mean city or urban area.

Appears frequently in compounds: 城市 (city), 城墙 (city wall), 进城 (to go into the city), 城里 (in the city), and 老城 (old town). Can function independently to refer to a city or town, especially in colloquial speech like 进城 (to go to town).

Examples

1. 周末我们一家人进城去逛商场。 At the weekend our whole family went into the city to visit the shopping centre.
2. 这座老城有几百年的历史了。 This old town has several hundred years of history.
3. 城里的生活节奏比农村快得多。 The pace of life in the city is much faster than in the countryside.

Usage Guide

Context: everyday, travel, geography

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 明天我要进城买点东西。(I'm going into the city tomorrow to buy some things.)
• 这座古城非常值得参观。(This ancient city is well worth visiting.)

Don't Say

• 一个很大的城 (Avoid using 城 alone to describe a big city in formal writing — say 一座很大的城市; 城 alone is more colloquial)

Origin & History

Composed of 土 (earth) and 成 (to accomplish, phonetic), originally depicting an earthen wall built around a settlement for defence.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal