中草药 (zhōng cǎo yào) — Chinese herbal medicine

Definition

noun
Chinese herbal medicine
Measure word · 种

Examples

  • 中草药。
    Tā shēng bìng hòu yì zhí hē zhōng cǎo yào tiáo lǐ shēn tǐ.
    After he got sick, he has been drinking Chinese herbal medicine to regulate his body.
  • 中草药。
    Zhè jiā yào diàn zhuān mén mài zhōng cǎo yào.
    This pharmacy specializes in selling Chinese herbal medicine.
  • 中草药。
    Zhōng yī cháng yòng zhōng cǎo yào zhì liáo màn xìng bìng.
    Traditional Chinese medicine often uses Chinese herbal medicine to treat chronic diseases.

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.

中zhōngChinese
草药herbal medicine
草cǎoherb药yàomedicine
偏正Modifier + head

中 gives Chinese, 草 gives herb, and 药 gives medicine, together Chinese herbal medicine.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The original picture showed a flagpole with a drum in the middle, set up in the center of a field.

Open 中 →

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
艹Written in full as艸cǎograss; plant
Sound part声符shēngfú
早
早zǎo草cǎo
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

草 pairs 艹 (grass; plant) with 早, which gives the sound. The form originally referred to another word and was later used for the grass sense.

Open 草 →

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 藥; 药 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
艹Written in full as艸cǎograss
Sound part声符shēngfú
樂
樂lè藥yào
Same sound today

In the traditional form 藥, 艹 shows grass and 樂 gives the sound; this story is about 藥, not about the simplified 药.

Open 药 →

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