书商 (shū shāng) — book dealer, bookseller | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

book dealerbookseller

Measure word · 个

Examples

书商。
Zhè wèi shū shāng jīng yíng le èr shí duō nián de jiù shū diàn.
This bookseller has run a used bookstore for over twenty years.
书商。
Tā shì yí wèi hěn yǒu míng de dú lì shū shāng.
She is a very well-known independent bookseller.
书商。
Xǔ duō shū shāng cān yù le zhè cì tú shū zhǎn xiāo huì.
Many book dealers participated in this book fair.

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.

商shāngmerchant

书 (book) combines with 商 (merchant) to mean a book dealer.

Characters in this word

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 書; 书 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

聿聿yùwriting brush

Sound part声符shēngfú

者

者zhě書shū

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

The traditional form 書 uses 聿, a writing brush, and 者 for its sound; the simplified 书 is a later shorthand.

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Appears in

Professions & Jobs

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