HSK · Level 61
105 words
Chinese word
胡同儿
Pronunciation
Pinyinhú tòngr
Meaning
- nounalley
Example
他住在北京的胡同儿里。tā zhù zài běi jīng de hú tòngr lǐ
He lives in an alley in Beijing.
More examples
胡同儿正在被修缮，老房子换了新瓦。hú tòngr zhèng zài bèi xiū shàn lǎo fáng zi huàn le xīn wǎ
The alley is under repair, and the old houses have new roof tiles.
Core concept
The close, narrow space between rows of city homes, used as a local way through.
Common phrases
保护胡同儿bǎo hù hú tòngr
preserve an alley
胡同儿风貌hú tòngr fēng mào
alleyway appearance
改造胡同儿gǎi zào hú tòngr
renovate an alley
Similar words
胡同hú tòng: A traditional residential lane between homes, especially in northern China.
小巷xiǎo xiàng: A short, narrow passage through a city or residential area.
里弄lǐ lòng: A network of narrow lanes in an old residential area, mainly in southern China.
Definition in Chinese
口语中常用的名词，带儿化，指城市旧区或居民区内房屋之间狭窄的通道或小巷，主要作为居民出入和日常生活的通道。kóu yǔ zhōng cháng yòng de míng cí dài ér huà zhǐ chéng shì jiù qū huò jū mín qū nèi fáng wū zhī jiān xiá zhǎi de tōng dào huò xiǎo xiàng zhǔ yào zuò wéi jū mín chū rù hé rì cháng shēng huó de tōng dào
Word origin
胡同儿 (hútòngér, "alley") is based on 胡同 (hútòng, "alley"), generally linked to a Mongolian borrowing, while 儿化 (érhuà, "r-sound suffixing") gives it a northern conversational sound.
Usage tips
- In speech, the final r-like sound is attached to the word rather than pronounced as a separate syllable, which helps identify this northern colloquial form in conversation.
Other meanings
- lanenoun
- back streetnoun
- side streetnoun
Opposites
- 主干道zhǔ gàn dàoarterial roadnoun
Related words
- 胡同文化hú tòng wén huàhutong culturenoun