频

頻

pín

步 + 页

Definitions

pín (noun,adjective) frequency; frequent

pín (adverb) repeatedly

Etymology

Depicts a person standing (页) on the shore wading (涉) in shallow water. Based on the original meaning "riverside", now written as 瀕. The meaning later shifted to "continuous" and "repeatedly".

About

The character 频 (traditional form 頻) now conveys frequency or repetition, but its earliest meaning was quite different. It combines 步 (bù) 'step, walking' on the left and 页 (yè, traditional 頁) 'head, person' on the right, originally depicting a person wading at the water's edge, with 步 suggesting the stepping motion of 涉 'wade'. This gave the original sense 'riverside', later written with a water radical as 瀕. The meaning then shifted to 'continuous' and 'repeatedly', which remains the core idea today. While 页 may serve a phonetic role, the image of a person stepping or turning naturally evokes the notion of recurring action.

Etymology Hide

Seal Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

我喜欢看视频。

Wǒ xǐhuān kàn shìpín.

I like watching videos.

我经常看这个频道。

Wǒ jīngcháng kàn zhège píndào.

I often watch this channel.

他频繁地打电话。

Tā pínfán de dǎ diànhuà.

He frequently makes phone calls.

这个频率很稳定。

Zhège pínlǜ hěn wěndìng.

This frequency is very stable.

请发送音频文件。

Qǐng fāsòng yīnpín wénjiàn.

Please send the audio file.

这个频段被占用。

Zhège pínduàn bèi zhànyòng.

This frequency band is occupied.

事故频发引起关注。

Shìgù pínfā yǐnqǐ guānzhù.

Frequent accidents have attracted attention.

我们分析了访问频次。

Wǒmen fēnxī le fǎngwèn píncì.

We analyzed the visit frequency.

Related Characters

Composed characters:

Component: 步

Component: 页

频