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书画 (shū huà) — painting and calligraphy (as a combined traditional art form)

Definition

书画 specifically names the paired traditional art of calligraphy AND painting, treated as one cultural practice. 书法 is calligraphy alone; 美术 is the broader Western-style 'fine arts'.

noun
painting and calligraphy (as a combined traditional art form)

Examples

  • 书画。
    Tā de jiā lǐ guà le hěn duō shū huà.
    There are many paintings and calligraphy pieces hanging in his home.
  • 书画。
    Tā cóng xiǎo jiù xǐ huan xué xí shū huà.
    He has liked learning painting and calligraphy since childhood.
  • 书画，？
    Míng tiān yǒu yí gè shū huà zhǎn lǎn, nǐ xiǎng qù ma?
    There is a painting and calligraphy exhibition tomorrow — do you want to go?

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

书shūcalligraphy
画huàpainting

书 (calligraphy) and 画 (painting) name two traditional arts combined.

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.

Open 书 →

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 畫; 画 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
聿聿yùbrush
Sound part声符shēngfú
規
規guī畫huà
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 畫 pairs 聿, a brush, with 規 for its sound. The simplified 画 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the old parts.

Open 画 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6

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