响鼻 (xiǎng bí) — snort (the sound made by a horse or similar animal through its nostrils)

Definition

Onomatopoeia for the snort of a horse or similar animal. Used as a noun (often paired with 声 or the verb 打).

noun
snort (the sound made by a horse or similar animal through its nostrils)

Examples

  • 响鼻，。
    Nà pǐ mǎ dǎ le yí gè xiǎng bí, xiǎn de hěn bù ān.
    That horse gave a snort and seemed very uneasy.
  • 响鼻，。
    Tā tīng dào lǘ zi de xiǎng bí shēng, zhī dào tā è le.
    He heard the donkey's snort and knew it was hungry.
  • ，响鼻。
    Qí shǒu qīng qīng pāi le pāi mǎ bó zi, mǎ dǎ le ge xiǎng bí.
    The rider gently patted the horse's neck, and the horse gave a snort.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

响xiǎngmake a sound
鼻bínose

响 means to make a sound and 鼻 means nose; together they describe the sound a horse makes through its nose.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 響; 响 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
音音yīnsound
Sound part声符shēngfú
鄉
鄉xiāng響xiǎng
Same sound today

The traditional form 響 pairs 音, meaning sound, with 鄉 to give its pronunciation. The simplified 响 is a later shorthand, so its visible parts are not the historical parts.

Open 响 →

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
自自zìnose
Sound part声符shēngfú
畀
畀bì鼻bí
Same sound today

鼻 pairs 自, meaning nose, with 畀, which gives the sound.

Open 鼻 →

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