房间
fáng jiān · HSK 1
room
🚪🛏️ 房 (house) + 间 (space between) = a room inside a house
房 means house or building; 间 means the space or gap between things, and also serves as the measure word for rooms. Together 房间 names the bounded space within a building — a room.
间 — gate 門 + sun 日 (originally moon 月)
Originally written 閒, showing the moon 月 shining through a gate 門 — the gap or space between the doors. The moon was later replaced by 日 (sun), giving the modern 间. The core meaning 'space/interval between' extended to time intervals, rooms, and the measure word for buildings.