明 míng bright
bright; clear; to understand; next
How to remember 明: 日 sun + 月 moon = bright. At dawn on the beach the sun rises while the moon is still up, and the surfer squints and says "Wow, it is so bright!"
Component breakdown
明 = 日 sun + 月 moon
- 日 sun
- 月 moon
At dawn on the beach the sun rises while the moon is still up, and the surfer squints and says "Wow, it is so bright!"
How it came to be
On the oldest carvings this is not the sun at all: it is a lattice window with the moon shining through it into a dark room. The window was later replaced by the sun.
How it is used
- Bright / clear, and by extension understand / make clear - 明白 (míngbai) understand, 说明 (shuōmíng) explain, 证明 (zhèngmíng) prove.
- Also next in time - 明天 (míngtiān) tomorrow, 明年 (míngnián) next year.
Characters built with 明
Words with 明
- 明天míngtiāntomorrowHSK 1
- 明年míngniánnext yearHSK 1
- 明白míngbaiclearHSK 3
- 聪明cōngmingintelligentHSK 3
- 证明zhèngmíngproofHSK 4
- 说明shuōmíngexplainHSK 4
- 说明书shuōmíngshūmanualHSK 4
- 光明guāngmínglightHSK 5
- 发明fāmíngto inventHSK 5
- 明星míngxīngstarHSK 5
- 明显míngxiǎnclearHSK 5
- 明确míngquèclear-cutHSK 5
- 表明biǎomíngto make clearHSK 5
- 文明wénmíngcivilizedHSK 6
- 明亮míngliàngbrightHSK 6
- 明明míngmíngobviouslyHSK 6
- 照明zhàomínglightingHSK 6
- 透明tòumíngtransparentHSK 6
- 鲜明xiānmíngbrightHSK 6
- 分明fēnmíngclearHSK 7
- 声明shēngmíngto stateHSK 7
- 失明shīmíngto lose one's eyesightHSK 7
- 开明kāimíngenlightenedHSK 7
- 查明chámíngto investigate and find outHSK 7
- 精明jīngmíngastuteHSK 7
- 高明gāomíngbrilliantHSK 7
- 光明磊落guāngmíng-lěiluòopen and candid (idiom)HSK 8
- 明媚míngmèibright and beautifulHSK 8
- 明智míngzhìsensibleHSK 8
- 明朗mínglǎngbrightHSK 8
- 英明yīngmíngwiseHSK 9
- 黎明límíngdawnHSK 9
Example sentences
- 你明白了吗？ Nǐ míngbai le ma?Do you understand?
- 我明天打电话给你。 Wǒ míngtiān dǎ diànhuà gěi nǐ.I'll call you tomorrow.
- 她是有名的电影明星。 Tā shì yǒumíng de diànyǐng míngxīng.She is a famous movie star.
- 我希望明天不下雨。 Wǒ xīwàng míngtiān bú xiàyǔ.I hope it won't rain tomorrow.