成群结队 (chéng qún jié duì)

Character breakdown

• 成 (Chéng) · 6 strokes

  Depicts defending city walls (丁) with an axe (戌). 丁 also represents the sound. Based on the original meaning "city", now written as 城. The current meaning is a phonetic loan.

• 群 (qún) · 13 strokes

  Phonosemantic compound. 羊 represents the meaning and 君 represents the sound.

• 结 (jiē) · 9 strokes

  Simplified form of 結. Phonosemantic compound. 糹 represents the meaning and 吉 represents the sound.

• 队 (duì) · 4 strokes

  Simplified form of 隊. Phonosemantic compound. 阝 represents the meaning and 㒸 represents the sound.

Usage

学生们成群结队地去看演出。

making up a group, forming a troupe (idiom); in large numbers; as a large crowd

xué shēng men chéng qún jié duì dì qù kàn yǎn chū 。