京 (jīng) — capital (of a country) — used in names of capital cities; short for Beijing — appears in cultural terms; ten million (archaic)
Definition
京 is a bound morpheme meaning 'capital,' used in formal place names like 北京 and 东京. In culture terms (京剧, 京味) it stands for Beijing specifically.
bound form
capital (of a country) — used in names of capital citiesshort for Beijing — appears in cultural termsten million (archaic)
Easily confused
- 享xiǎnglook-aliketo enjoy, to benefit from
- 经jīngsound-aliketo pass through; to go through (a place, time, or experience)
- 哀āilook-alike(bound form) sorrowful, lamenting, tragic (used in compound words)
- 惊jīngsound-aliketo startle, to alarm (someone)
- 亨hēnglook-alike(bound form) smooth, prosperous, going well
- 精jīngsound-alikeskilled; proficient; refined (of ability)
Examples
- 。Běi jīng shì zhōng guó de shǒu dū.Beijing is the capital of China.
- 。Tā shì yí wèi jīng jù yǎn yuán.He is a Peking opera performer.
- 。Zhè zuò gǔ chéng céng shì gǔ dài jīng chéng.This ancient city was once a capital city in ancient times.
Origin
Pictograph六书liùshū
象形xiàngxíngA drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.
京 originally drew a tall building.
Appears in
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