<p>You can treated it as an abbreviation of :</p>
<blockquote>
<p>打印机好像坏了，我按半天了(按钮)，一直没反应。</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Or in English,</p>
<blockquote>
<p>.... I have pressed (the buttons on) it for a long time, ....</p>
</blockquote>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-06-02T03:08:27.840Z
2021-06-02T03:08:27.840Z
fefe
<p>This is from a HSK5 exam listening section:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>男：打印机好像坏了，<strong>我按半天了</strong>，一直没反应。<br />
女：昨天刚修的，居然又坏了?真耽误事儿，我看看。<br />
问：女的对什么感到奇怪?</p>
</blockquote>
<p>I'm not sure what 按 is doing in this sentence.  From the context, it seems to mean something like &quot;attempted to operate&quot;.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>按 (àn​)<br />
<a href="https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?wdqb=%E6%8C%89" rel="nofollow noreferrer">CC-CEDICT</a>: to press / to push / to leave aside or shelve / to control / to restrain / to keep one's hand on / to check or refer to / according to / in the light of / (of an editor or author) to make a comment</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Perhaps &quot;to control&quot; is the appropriate meaning here.  I'm not sure.</p>
<p><strong>Question</strong>: What does 按 mean in 打印机好像坏了，我按半天了，一直没反应?</p>
<p><a href="https://translate.google.cn/?sl=zh-CN&amp;tl=en&amp;text=%E6%89%93%E5%8D%B0%E6%9C%BA%E5%A5%BD%E5%83%8F%E5%9D%8F%E4%BA%86%EF%BC%8C%E6%88%91%E6%8C%89%E5%8D%8A%E5%A4%A9%E4%BA%86%EF%BC%8C%E4%B8%80%E7%9B%B4%E6%B2%A1%E5%8F%8D%E5%BA%94%E3%80%82&amp;op=translate" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Google Translate</a> translates the first part to the following, which is not particularly helpful:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The printer seems to be broken. I have pressed it for a long time, but there is no response.</p>
</blockquote>

<meaning><meaning-in-context>
What does 按 mean in 打印机好像坏了，我按半天了，一直没反应?
# What does 按 mean in 打印机好像坏了，我按半天了，一直没反应?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2021-06-02)

This is from a HSK5 exam listening section:

> 男：打印机好像坏了，**我按半天了**，一直没反应。  
> 女：昨天刚修的，居然又坏了?真耽误事儿，我看看。  
> 问：女的对什么感到奇怪?

I'm not sure what 按 is doing in this sentence. From the context, it seems to mean something like "attempted to operate".

> 按 (àn​)  
> [CC-CEDICT](https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?wdqb=%E6%8C%89): to press / to push / to leave aside or shelve / to control / to restrain / to keep one's hand on / to check or refer to / according to / in the light of / (of an editor or author) to make a comment

Perhaps "to control" is the appropriate meaning here. I'm not sure.

**Question**: What does 按 mean in 打印机好像坏了，我按半天了，一直没反应?

[Google Translate](https://translate.google.cn/?sl=zh-CN&tl=en&text=%E6%89%93%E5%8D%B0%E6%9C%BA%E5%A5%BD%E5%83%8F%E5%9D%8F%E4%BA%86%EF%BC%8C%E6%88%91%E6%8C%89%E5%8D%8A%E5%A4%A9%E4%BA%86%EF%BC%8C%E4%B8%80%E7%9B%B4%E6%B2%A1%E5%8F%8D%E5%BA%94%E3%80%82&op=translate) translates the first part to the following, which is not particularly helpful:

> The printer seems to be broken. I have pressed it for a long time, but there is no response.

**Tags:** meaning, meaning-in-context


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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2021-06-02. Score: 6 | Accepted answer

You can treated it as an abbreviation of :

> 打印机好像坏了，我按半天了(按钮)，一直没反应。

Or in English,

> .... I have pressed (the buttons on) it for a long time, ....


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