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北斗 (běi dǒu) — the Big Dipper / the Plough / Ursa Major; BeiDou (China's satellite navigation system)

Definition

Literally 'Northern Dipper' — the traditional Chinese name for the Big Dipper (Ursa Major), also used for China's BeiDou satellite navigation system named after it.

noun
the Big Dipper / the Plough / Ursa MajorBeiDou (China's satellite navigation system)

Examples

  • 北斗。
    Wǎn shàng tái tóu jiù néng kàn dào běi dǒu qī xīng.
    You can see the seven stars of the Big Dipper by looking up at night.
  • 北斗。
    Zhōng guó de běi dǒu dǎo háng xì tǒng zài quán qiú hěn duō guó jiā dōu kě yǐ shǐ yòng.
    China's BeiDou navigation system can be used in many countries around the world.
  • 北斗。
    Gǔ dài rén yòng běi dǒu de fāng xiàng lái biàn bié jì jié.
    Ancient people used the direction of the Big Dipper to distinguish seasons.

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.

北běinorth
斗dòudipper

北 points to the northern sky and 斗 names a dipper-shaped group of stars.

Characters in this word

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

The form 北 shows two people standing back to back. It originally meant 'back'.

Open 北 →

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

The shape of 斗 originally showed a ladle-shaped dipper or cup used to measure grain, held in a hand.

Open 斗 →
Appears in
Sky & Space

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