Chinese word

后面

Pronunciation

Pinyinhòu miàn

Meaning

  • nounback

Example

门后面有个人。mén hòu miàn yǒu gè rén

There is a person behind the door.

Illustration for 后面 (back)

More examples

他排在队伍后面。tā pái zài duì wǔ hòu miàn

He is at the back of the line.

Core concept

The side or point that trails another thing, either in space or in a sequence.

Common phrases

  • 队伍后面duì wǔ hòu miàn

    at the back of the line

  • 车后面chē hòu miàn

    behind the car

  • 学校后面xué xiào hòu miàn

    behind the school

Similar words

后边hòu biān: The place behind an object or building, in casual speech.
后头hòu tou: The position behind a person or thing, in casual speech.
背后bèi hòu: The unseen circumstances or causes behind an event or situation.

Definition in Chinese

用于表示人或物位于另一对象的后方，在日常也可指随后发生或谈论的事物。yòng yú biǎo shì rén huò wù wèi yú lìng yí duì xiàng de hòu fāng zài rì cháng yě kě zhǐ suí hòu fā shēng huò tán lùn de shì wù

Word origin

后 (hòu, "rear or later") + 面 (miàn, "side or surface") forms a word for the rear side and, by extension, what comes later.

Usage tips

  • Chinese commonly places a location word after the noun it describes, while English often puts the location before the noun.

Other meanings

  • behindnoun
  • afteradverb

Opposites

Word lists with this word