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一等奖 (yī děng jiǎng) — first prize

Definition

noun
first prize
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 一等奖。
    Tā zài bǐ sài zhōng huò dé le yī děng jiǎng.
    He won first prize in the competition.
  • 一等奖。
    Zhè cì yī děng jiǎng de jiǎng jīn hěn gāo.
    The prize money for this first prize is very high.
  • ，一等奖。
    Tā nǔ lì le sān nián, zhōng yú ná dào le yī děng jiǎng.
    She worked hard for three years and finally got first prize.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

一等first grade
一yīfirst等děnggrade
偏正Modifier + head
奖jiǎngprize

一 and 等 make first grade, which specifies the kind of 奖.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

一 is drawn as one horizontal stroke, marking the number one.

Open 一 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
竹竹zhúbamboo
Sound part声符shēngfú
寺
寺sì等děng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The top 竹 shows bamboo strips used for writing and sorting; the bottom 寺 once gave the sound, but now sounds different.

Open 等 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 獎; 奖 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
犬犬quǎndog
Sound part声符shēngfú
將
將jiāng獎jiǎng
Same sound today

The traditional form 獎 pairs 將 as a sound part with 犬, a dog; the simplified 奖 is a later shorthand. The evidence says the dog part's meaning is unclear, perhaps referring to guiding a dog by voice.

Open 奖 →
Appears in
Success & Failure

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