间
between; among; within a definite time or space; room; section of a room or lateral space between two pairs of pillars; gap; to separate; to thin out (seedlings); to sow discontent
Closest English meanings
between·room·space
The Calligrapher — Ōuyáng Tōng 欧阳通
Tang regular-script master known for powerful, square strokes.
Tang calligrapher (?–691), master of regular script — known for 《道因法师碑》. Tang dynasty
Cultural Story
間 sets the sun 日 between two doors 門, the slash of light in the gap, hence a space, an interval, or the room between. 《説文解字》 reads it as the空隙, the empty place. From a literal crack in a gate it widened to mean any betweenness, of time, place, or people, the pause that separates and connects things at once.
Common words & phrases
- 时间 time
- 空间 space
- 房间 room
- 中间 middle · between
- 人间 human world · the world
- 间隔 interval · spacing
Read the story behind the character
We mark 時間, time itself, as the space between moments, and 空間, the room we move through. A 房間 is the private room behind a door, 中間 the middle between two points, 人間 the human world we inhabit, and 間隔 the spacing of seats or events. 间 quietly structures modern life, the gaps and rooms that give shape to everything we measure and enter.
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