古生物 (gǔ shēng wù) — ancient extinct life; fossil

Definition

noun
ancient extinct lifefossil

Examples

  • 古生物。
    Zhè jiā bó wù guǎn zhǎn chū le hěn duō gǔ shēng wù de huà shí.
    This museum displays many fossils of ancient extinct life.
  • 古生物。
    Kē xué jiā zhèng zài yán jiū zhè xiē gǔ shēng wù de shēng cún huán jìng.
    Scientists are studying the living environment of these ancient extinct life forms.
  • 古生物。
    Tōng guò gǔ shēng wù huà shí kě yǐ liǎo jiě dì qiú de lì shǐ.
    Through fossil remains, we can learn about Earth's history.

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.

古gǔancient
生物living thing
生shēngliving物wùthing
偏正Modifier + head

古 means ancient, while 生物 means living things, so the word refers to ancient organisms or fossils.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

One reading of 古 sees a shield-like shape above an open mark, showing strength and firmness. Another sees a person spitting out bad-tasting food.

Open 古 →

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

生 shows 屮 (a bud) above 一 (the ground), drawing a sprout coming up from the earth.

Open 生 →

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
牛牛niú
Sound part声符shēngfú
勿
勿wù物wù
Same sound today

物 puts 牛 beside 勿: 牛 gives the meaning, and 勿 gives the sound.

Open 物 →

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