传真

• Pinyin: chuán zhēn
• Hanzi breakdown: 传 = 亻 (person) + 专 (exclusive) — to pass along; 真 = 直 (straight) + 八 (eight) — genuine, true

Meaning

Fax; to fax. The transmission of documents via telephone lines, or the machine used for this purpose.

Though less common in the digital age, still used in business and legal contexts in China. Can refer to the machine (传真机), the document received, or the action of sending a fax.

Examples

1. 请把这份合同传真给我们公司。 Please fax this contract to our company.
2. 我们办公室还保留着一台传真机。 Our office still keeps a fax machine.
3. 他收到了一份重要的传真文件。 He received an important fax document.

Usage Guide

Context: business, legal, office

Tone: professional

Do Say

• 请把文件传真过来。(Please fax the document over.)
• 传真号码是多少？(What's the fax number?)

Don't Say

• 说'我传真你一张照片'表示发送照片 (Don't use 传真 for sending photos casually — use 发送 or 发; 传真 is for formal document transmission)

Origin & History

传 (to transmit, to pass on) + 真 (true, real). Originally meaning 'to transmit a true copy.'

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal