作曲 (zuò qǔ) — to compose (music) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

作曲 (zuò qǔ) means 'to compose music' — a verb that pairs naturally with 家 to form the agent noun 作曲家 ('composer').

verb

to compose (music)

Examples

。
Tā shì yí wèi zhù míng de zuò qǔ jiā.
He is a famous composer.
。
Zhè wèi yīn yuè jiā wèi zhè bù diàn yǐng zuò le yì shǒu qǔ.
This musician composed a piece for the film.
作曲。
Wǒ zuì jìn zhèng zài xué xí zuò qǔ.
I am currently learning to compose.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

作 “make” and 曲 “tune” combine to mean create music.

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.

亻乍作

Meaning part形符xíngfú

亻Written in full as人rénperson

Sound part声符shēngfú

乍

乍zhà作zuò

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

The left side 亻 comes from 人, meaning 'person', and the right side 乍 gives the sound.

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

曲 is drawn as a bent object, matching the meaning 'bend'.

Appears in

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.