口红 (kǒu hóng) — lipstick | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

lipstick

Measure word · 支

Examples

口红。
Tā jīn tiān tú le yì zhī xīn mǎi de kǒu hóng.
She put on a newly bought lipstick today.
口红。
Tā de kǒu hóng yán sè hěn piào liang.
Her lipstick color is very pretty.
口红。
Zhè zhī kǒu hóng shì bié rén sòng tā de shēng rì lǐ wù.
This lipstick was a birthday gift from someone else.

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.

口红 combines 口, mouth, and 红, red, to name a red cosmetic for the mouth.

Characters in this word

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

The form 口 looks like an open mouth.

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 紅; 红 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

糸糸mìsilk

Sound part声符shēngfú

工

工gōng紅hóng

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

The traditional form 紅 puts 糸 (silk) next to 工, which gives the sound; the simplified 红 is a later shorthand.

Appears in

Toiletries & Cosmetics

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