扃 (jiōng) - door bolt & door latch
扃 · jiōng
door bolt;
door latch;
to close or shut a door;
ancient term for the outer gate of a residence.
door boltdoor latchto close or shut a door
Usage highlights
door boltto close a doorouter gateheavy boltto latchto unlock
Usage & contexts
Examples
- He closed the door (扃门).
- The ancient gate had a heavy bolt (重扃).
- She secured the latch (上扃).
- The outer gate (外扃) was locked at night.
Collocations
- door bolt(门扃)
- to close a door(扃户)
- outer gate(外扃)
- heavy bolt(重扃)
- to latch(上扃)
- to unlock(启扃)
Idioms
- Deeply bolted and securely locked(深扃固钥)
- To shut one's door and reflect(扃门思过)
- The outer gate is closed(外扃已闭)
Cultural background
FAQ- In ancient China, 扃 referred to the horizontal bar or bolt used to secure gates and doors, representing security and privacy.
- It appears in classical texts describing aristocratic residences where outer gates (扃) distinguished inner family spaces from the outside world.
- The character embodies traditional architectural security methods before modern locks became prevalent.