Definitions

yuán (noun) garden; park
yuán (noun) yard; courtyard

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. represents the meaning and represents the sound. Simplified form of .

Semantic: Phonetic:

About

The character 园 consists of the enclosure radical 囗 surrounding the phonetic component 元, which replaced the more complex component 袁 in the traditional form 園. It originally referred to a walled or fenced area specifically for cultivating fruit trees, vegetables, or flowers, distinct from open fields for staple crops. Over time, the meaning expanded to include any planned, bounded space such as a park, garden, or recreational area, always implying a deliberately designed environment for botanical, aesthetic, or leisure purposes.

Etymology Hide

Seal etymology image
Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)
Traditional Modern
Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

里有一个长椅。

Gōngyuán lǐ yǒu yīgè chángyǐ.

There is a bench in the park.

这个花非常漂亮。

Zhège huāyuán fēicháng piàoliang.

This garden is very beautiful.

我的孩子在幼儿上学。

Wǒ de háizi zài yòu'éryuán shàngxué.

My child goes to kindergarten.

的清晨十分安静。

Xiàoyuán de qīngchén shífēn ānjìng.

The campus is very quiet in the early morning.

动物里有很多动物。

Dòngwùyuán lǐ yǒu hěnduō dòngwù.

There are many animals in the zoo.

这座林的设计很独特。

Zhè zuò yuánlín de shèjì hěn dútè.

The design of this classical garden is very unique.

我们参观了著名的颐和

Wǒmen cānguān le zhùmíng de Yíhéyuán.

We visited the famous Summer Palace.

那个有机农场更像一个生态

Nàgè yǒujī nóngchǎng gèng xiàng yīgè shēngtàiyuán.

That organic farm is more like an ecological park.