剪纸 (jiǎn zhǐ) — paper-cut (traditional Chinese folk art) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

剪纸 (jiǎn zhǐ) is a traditional Chinese folk art of cutting decorative patterns from paper, often displayed at festivals like 春节.

noun

paper-cut (traditional Chinese folk art)

Measure word · 张

Examples

剪纸，。
Zhè wèi lǎo yì rén shàn cháng jiǎn zhǐ, yǐ jīng zuò le sì shí nián.
This elderly artist is skilled at paper-cutting and has been doing it for forty years.
，剪纸。
Chūn jié shí, rén men cháng bǎ jiǎn zhǐ tiē zài chuāng hu shàng zuò wéi zhuāng shì.
During the Spring Festival, people often paste paper-cuts on windows as decorations.
剪纸。
Zhè zhǒng chuán tǒng jiǎn zhǐ gōng yì yǐ jīng liú chuán le shàng qiān nián.
This traditional paper-cutting craft has been passed down for over a thousand years.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

剪 means to cut and 纸 is paper, giving the folk art of cutting paper.

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

刀刀dāoknife

Sound part声符shēngfú

歬

歬qián剪jiǎn

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In 剪, 刀 is the knife part and 歬 gives the sound. After 前 came to replace 歬, another 刀 was added to 剪.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 紙; 纸 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

糸糸mìsilk

Sound part声符shēngfú

氏

氏shì紙zhǐ

Same sound today

For 纸, the traditional form 紙 combines 糸 (silk) with 氏 (the sound part).

Appears in

Chinese Culture & Customs Crafts & Handiwork

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