兔唇 (tù chún) — cleft lip (harelip) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Literally 'rabbit lip,' a colloquial term for a cleft lip. In clinical settings, the standard medical term is 唇裂.

noun

cleft lip (harelip)

Examples

兔唇，。
Zhè ge hái zi chū shēng shí jiù yǒu tù chún, dàn shǒu shù hěn chéng gōng.
This child was born with a cleft lip, but the surgery was very successful.
兔唇。
tù chún Shì yì zhǒng cháng jiàn de xiān tiān xìng jī xíng.
Cleft lip is a common congenital deformity.
兔唇。
Yī shēng jiàn yì jǐn zǎo zhì liáo tù chún.
Doctors recommend treating cleft lip as early as possible.

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.

兔tùrabbit

兔 describes the shape of 唇, like a rabbit lip.

Characters in this word

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

The shape of 兔 comes from drawing a rabbit.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

辰口唇

Meaning part形符xíngfú

口口kǒumouth

Sound part声符shēngfú

辰

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

唇 is built from 口, meaning mouth, and 辰, which points to its sound.

Appears in

Illness & Symptoms

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