‘中旬’ literally means ‘middle ten-day period’ and refers to the second 10-day segment of a month — specifically days 11 through 20. The character ‘中’ (zhōng) means ‘middle’, while ‘旬’ (xún) is an ancient Chinese unit of time equal to ten days, still used today in formal, administrative, meteorological, or journalistic contexts. Unlike Western calendars that emphasize weeks or halves of months, Chinese temporal expressions often divide each month into three ‘xún’: 上旬 (shàng xún, 1st–10th), 中旬 (zhōng xún, 11th–20th), and 下旬 (xià xún, 21st–end).

This term appears frequently in weather forecasts, economic reports, government announcements, and agricultural planning — for example, ‘降雨集中在中旬’ (rainfall concentrated in the middle ten-day period). It’s neutral in register but slightly formal; native speakers rarely use it in casual speech, preferring phrases like ‘月中’ (zhōng yuè, mid-month) instead. Understanding ‘中旬’ helps learners interpret official documents and news more accurately.