(hǎi jūn) - navy in Mandarin
hǎijūnTraditional: 海軍
Translation
navy
Word origin
海 (hǎi) is the sea, from 氵(water) with 每 as the phonetic. 军 (jūn) is an army, originally a chariot enclosed by a cover, and it names any armed service. The pair is a nineteenth century coinage built on the same logic as 空军 for the air force.
- Origin
- compound
- Root
- 海 (hǎi, sea) + 军 (jūn, armed force)
Stroke order
海
军
Examples
役。
He served in the navy when he was young.
。
The navy ships are moored in the harbour.
。
Her elder brother is a naval officer.
。
This country has a powerful navy.
。
The navy and the air force train together.
海军 (hǎi jūn) is the navy as an institution. It slots into a tidy set with 陆军 (army, land force), 空军 (air force) and 军队 (the armed forces generally), so learning one gets you most of the others for free.
Used before another noun it does the work of the English adjective naval: 海军军官 a naval officer, 海军基地 a naval base, 海军学校 a naval academy. No extra particle is needed.
The trap is 军 (jūn) itself. It is first tone and flat, and English speakers who have learned 君, 军 and 均 by sight often let the tone drift. Keep it high and level, and keep the 海 as a full third tone dip when the word stands alone.
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海军: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "海军" (navy): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.
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Start your free weekThis word is part of lesson 57.