Chinese word

封

Pronunciation

Pinyinfēng

Meaning

  • measure wordletter

Example

我刚给你发了一封邮件。wǒ gāng gěi nǐ fā le yì fēng yóu jiàn

I just sent you an email.

Illustration for 封 (letter)

More examples

我在邮箱里看到了一封邮件，还没来得及打开。wǒ zài yóu xiāng lǐ kàn dào le yì fēng yóu jiàn hái méi lái de jí dǎ kāi

I saw an email in my inbox, but I haven't had time to open it yet.

Core concept

A complete message treated as one sealed whole.

Common phrases

  • 打开一封邮件dǎ kāi yì fēng yóu jiàn

    open an email

  • 每封邮件měi fēng yóu jiàn

    every email

Similar words

个gè: A general measure word for one person or thing.
条tiáo: A measure word for one text message or other short message.
份fèn: A measure word for one separate document, newspaper, or serving of food.

Definition in Chinese

作量词，用来表示信件、电子邮件等成件的通信单位，通常与“信”“邮件”搭配。zuò liàng cí yòng lái biǎo shì xìn jiàn diàn zi yóu jiàn děng chéng jiàn de tōng xìn dān wèi tōng cháng yǔ xìn yóu jiàn dā pèi

Word origin

封 (fēng, "to seal") began with marking a boundary using a mound of earth, then came to describe closing something and a letter counted as one closed piece.

Usage tips

  • English usually places one directly before letter or email, but Chinese puts a measure word between the number and the message noun.

Other meanings

  • sealverb

Related words

Word lists with this word