健美操 (jiàn měi cāo) — aerobics

Definition

Aerobic exercise combining dance and calisthenics, typically done to music in a group class (see example: 跳健美操).

noun
aerobics
Measure word · 套

Examples

  • 健美操。
    Tā měi tiān dōu qù jiàn shēn fáng zuò jiàn měi cāo.
    She goes to the gym every day to do aerobics.
  • 健美操。
    jiàn měi cāo Shì yì zhǒng fēi cháng shòu huān yíng de yǒu yǎng yùn dòng.
    Aerobics is a very popular aerobic exercise.
  • 健美操。
    Jiào liàn dài zhe wǒ men yì qǐ tiào jiàn měi cāo.
    The coach led us to do aerobics together.

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.

健美healthy and beautiful
健jiànhealthy美měibeautiful
联合Side by side
操cāoexercise

健美 means healthy and beautiful, and 操 is exercise, so it is exercise for a healthy, beautiful body.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
亻Written in full as人rénperson
Sound part声符shēngfú
建
建jiàn健jiàn
Same sound today

The left part 亻 depicts a person, and the right part 建 gives the sound.

Open 健 →

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

美 shows 大, a person, wearing 羊, a headdress of feathers or ram's horn.

Open 美 →

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
手手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
喿
喿zào操cāo
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left part 手 shows a hand, indicating an action done by hand. The right part 喿 gives the sound.

Open 操 →

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