Definition
当兵 is a separable verb (离合词) meaning 'to serve as a soldier' or 'to join the army'. The two characters can be split to insert duration, frequency, or other elements — for example, 当了三年兵 ('served in the army for three years'). When not split, it's a fixed compound. You cannot put an object after it directly if you want to specify a branch or location; instead say 在海军当兵 ('serve in the navy').
v.o.
to serve in the armyto be a soldierto join the army
Examples
- 当兵。Tā dàxué bìyè hòu jiù qù dāng bīng le.He went to join the army after graduating from university.
- ，。Tā dāng le sān nián bīng, qùnián cái tuìwǔ.He served in the army for three years and was discharged only last year.
- 当兵，。dāng bīng suīrán xīnkǔ, dànshì hěn duànliàn rén.Serving in the army is tough, but it's very character-building.
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