当
dāng
to be
to act as; manage; withstand; when; during; ought; should; match equally; equal; same; obstruct; just at (a time or place); on the spot; right; just at
a picture of 当 → standing squarely at the mark
当 originally depicted a balance scale with equal pans — something held squarely in position. That sense of 'right at this spot, right at this moment' radiates outward into meanings like to act as, to be, and ought to.
她当老师已经十年了。
tā dāng lǎo shī yǐ jīng shí nián le。
she has been a teacher for ten years already.
当他走进房间时，大家都安静下来。
dāng tā zǒu jìn fáng jiān shí，dà jiā dōu ān jìng xià lái。
when he walked into the room, everyone went quiet.
Words with 当
允当
yǔn dàng
proper
过当
guò dàng
excessive
适当
shì dàng
suitable; appropriate
锐不可当
ruì bù kě dāng
unstoppable
锡当河
xī dāng hé
Sittang River of central Myanmar (Burma), between Irrawaddy and Salween rivers
门当户对
mén dāng hù duì
the families are well-matched in terms of social status (idiom)
阎王好见，小鬼难当
yán wáng hǎo jiàn , xiǎo guǐ nán dāng
lit. standing in front of the King of Hell is easy, but smaller devils are difficult to deal with (idiom)
防卫过当
fáng wèi guò dàng
excessive self-defense (self-defense with excessive force)
难当
nán dāng
hard to endure (hot weather, itchiness etc)
响叮当
xiǎng dīng dāng
to tinkle
响当当
xiǎng dāng dāng
resounding
顺当
shùn dang
smoothly