乳猪 (rǔ zhū) — suckling pig

Definition

A suckling pig — a young pig still nursing, typically roasted whole as a delicacy. In Chinese cuisine it's especially famous as a Cantonese (广东) specialty.

noun
suckling pig
Measure word · 只

Examples

  • 乳猪。
    Wǒ men diǎn le yì zhī rǔ zhū.
    We ordered a suckling pig.
  • 乳猪。
    Zhè dào rǔ zhū wài pí hěn cuì.
    This suckling pig has very crispy skin.
  • 乳猪。
    rǔ zhū Shì guǎng dōng cài lǐ hěn yǒu míng de yí dào cài.
    Suckling pig is a very famous dish in Cantonese cuisine.

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.

乳rǔsuckling
猪zhūpig

乳 gives suckling or milk, 猪 is the animal, so 乳猪 means a young pig that is suckled.

Characters in this word

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

乳 originally drew a kneeling woman holding and breastfeeding a child, matching its meanings of breast and milk.

Open 乳 →

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
犭Written in full as犬quǎndog
Sound part声符shēngfú
者
者zhě猪zhū
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

猪 combines 犭, a dog sign, with 者 as a sound part.

Open 猪 →

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