関 (guān) - Gate, pass, barrier & to close

関Tone 1

guān ｜ 14 strokes ｜ radical:

枫惠

関 · guān

Gate, pass, barrier;

to close;

to involve, to concern;

a critical juncture or checkpoint.

Gate, pass, barrierto closeto involve, to concern

Usage highlights

Close the doorCustomsRelationshipCritical pointMountain passConcern, involve

Synonyms

  • 门— door, gate
  • 口— opening, pass
  • 卡— checkpoint, card

Antonyms

  • 开— to open
  • 放— to release, let go

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • Close the door(关门)
  • Customs checkpoint(海关)
  • This concerns national security(关系国家安全)
  • Mountain pass(山关)
  • Critical moment(关键)

Collocations

  • Close the door(关门)
  • Customs(海关)
  • Relationship(关系)
  • Critical point(关键)
  • Mountain pass(山关)
  • Concern, involve(关于)

Idioms

  • One man guards the pass, ten thousand cannot get through(一夫当关，万夫莫开)
  • Life and death are a critical juncture(生死关头)
  • Close the door and beat the dog(关门打狗)
  • Breezing through the passes(过五关斩六将)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • Historically referred to mountain passes and checkpoints that were strategically important for defense and control.
  • In Buddhism, 'guan' can refer to meditation or insight practices (观), though this is a different character with same pronunciation.
  • The character appears in many geographical names for important mountain passes throughout Chinese history.

FAQ