五行 (wǔ xíng) — five elements of Chinese cosmology (metal, wood, water, fire, earth)

Definition

五行 (wǔxíng) is the core concept in Chinese cosmology: the five elements — metal, wood, water, fire, earth — used to explain natural cycles, medicine, feng shui, and traditional philosophy.

noun
five elements of Chinese cosmology (metal, wood, water, fire, earth)

Examples

  • 五行。
    Zhōng guó de wǔ xíng xué shuō yǒu jǐ qiān nián de lì shǐ.
    China's theory of the five elements has a history of thousands of years.
  • 五行。
    Zhōng yī cháng yòng wǔ xíng lái jiě shì rén tǐ de biàn huà.
    Traditional Chinese medicine often uses the five elements to explain changes in the human body.
  • 、、、、五行。
    Jīn, mù, shuǐ, huǒ, tǔ shì wǔ xíng de wǔ gè yuán sù.
    Metal, wood, water, fire, and earth are the five elements of the five elements.

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.

五wǔfive
行xíngelement

五 (five) and 行 (element) combine to name the five elements.

Characters in this word

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

An older form had a crossed mark between a top bar and a bottom bar. The modern 五 keeps those bars, while the original idea is uncertain.

Open 五 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

  • 彳彳chì
  • 亍亍chù

The shape of 行 originally showed a street intersection, even on both sides. Later it became uneven, with 彳 on the left and 亍 on the right.

Open 行 →

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