湯姆當教師約有三十年了。

Tom was a teacher for nearly thirty years.

Source: Tatoeba

Sentence Composition

1 湯姆 Tāng Tom (name)
=2 dāng
  1. to be
  2. to act as
  3. manage
  4. withstand
  5. when
  6. during
  7. ought
  8. should
  9. match equally
  10. equal
  11. same
  12. obstruct
  13. just at (a time or place)
  14. on the spot
  15. right
  16. just at
=2 dàng
  1. at or in the very same...
  2. suitable
  3. adequate
  4. fitting
  5. proper
  6. to replace
  7. to regard as
  8. to think
  9. to pawn
  10. (coll.) to fail (a student)
3 教師 jiàoshī teacher

classifier:

=4 yāo to weigh in a balance or on a scale
=4 yuē
  1. to make an appointment
  2. to invite
  3. approximately
  4. pact
  5. treaty
  6. to economize
  7. to restrict
  8. to reduce (a fraction)
  9. concise
=5 yǒu
  1. to have; there is
  2. (bound form) having; with; -ful; -ed; -al (as in 有意 yǒu intentional)
=5 yòu
  1. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) alternative form of (yòu, “again”)
  2. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) alternative form of (yòu, “and; with a remainder of (when dividing an integer by ten)”)
  3. alternative form of (yòu, “again”)
  4. alternative form of (yòu, “and; with a remainder of (when dividing an integer by ten)”)
6 三十 sānshí
  1. thirty
  2. 30
=7 Nián surname Nian
=7 nián year

classifier:

=7 nián
  1. grain
  2. harvest (old)
  3. variant of nián
=8 le
  1. (completed action marker)
  2. (modal particle indicating change of state, situation now)
  3. (modal particle intensifying preceding clause)
=8 liǎo
  1. to finish
  2. (used with or after a verb to express (im)possibility, as in 忘不了 wàngbuliǎo "cannot forget")
  3. (literary) (usually followed by a negative such as or ) completely (not); entirely (not); (not) in the least
  4. to understand clearly (variant of liǎo)
=8 liǎo
  1. (of eyes) bright
  2. clear-sighted
  3. to understand clearly
=8 liào unofficial variant of liào