乙醇 (yǐ chún) — ethanol (the chemical compound), alcohol (as a…

Definition

noun

ethanol (the chemical compound)alcohol (as a chemical substance)

乙醇。
Yī yòng yǐ chún de nóng dù tōng cháng shì bǎi fēn zhī qī shí wǔ.
The concentration of medical ethanol is usually seventy-five percent.
乙醇。
Zhè zhǒng rán liào shì yòng yǐ chún hé qí tā chéng fèn hùn hé zhì chéng de.
This fuel is made by mixing ethanol with other ingredients.
乙醇。
Shí yàn shì lǐ chǔ cún le dà liàng gōng yè yǐ chún.
The laboratory stores a large amount of industrial ethanol.

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.

乙 indicates the two-carbon chain and 醇 names an alcohol, together forming ethanol.

Characters in this word

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

The origin of 乙 is obscure, with old suggestions including a plant trying to sprout, a fish's intestine or gill bone, or flowing water.

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

酉酉yǒu

Sound part声符shēngfú

𦎧

𦎧𦎧醇chún

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

醇 is built from 酉 and 𦎧, with 𦎧 giving the sound.

Appears in