dǎgēng

打更

Word · Verb

sound the night watches; patrol at night

Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma

Meanings

2 senses · 5 examples
1.

verb

sound the night watches

archaic

In ancient China, the night was divided into five two-hour "watches" (更, gēng). A night watchman would use a clapper (梆子) or gong to announce each watch. This practice is now obsolete.

Jiù旧
shí时
dǎ打
gēng更
de的
rén人
gōng工
zuò作
hěn很
xīn辛
kǔ苦
 。

Night watchmen in the old days had a hard job.

Sān三
gēng更
bàn半
yè夜
 ，
hái还
néng能
tīng听
dào到
dǎ打
gēng更
de的
shēng声
yīn音
 。

In the middle of the night, you could still hear the sound of the night watch.

Show 1 more example
Zhè这
bù部
gǔ古
zhuāng装
jù剧
lǐ里
yǒu有
dǎ打
gēng更
de的
chǎng场
jǐng景
 。

There is a scene of the night watch in this period drama.

2.

verb

patrol at night

dialect

A dialectal meaning, referring to the act of keeping watch or patrolling during the night. Closely related to the primary sense.

Tā他
nián年
qīng轻
shí时
zài在
cūn村
lǐ里
dǎ打
gēng更
 。

When he was young, he patrolled the village at night.

Dǎ打
gēng更
zhǔ主
yào要
shì是
wèi为
le了
fáng防
dào盗
 。

Night patrols were mainly to prevent theft.