四十六 (sì shí liù) — forty-six

Definition

numeral
forty-six

Examples

  • 四十六。
    Tā yí gòng mǎi le sì shí liù gè píng guǒ.
    He bought forty-six apples in total.
  • 四十六。
    Zhè liè huǒ chē yǒu sì shí liù jié chē xiāng.
    This train has forty-six carriages.
  • 四十六。
    Wǒ men bān yǒu sì shí liù gè xué shēng.
    Our class has forty-six students.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

四十forty
四sìfour十shíten
偏正Modifier + head
六liùsix

四 means four and 十 means ten, making forty; 六 means six, so it reads forty-six.

Characters in this word

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

The form 四 was drawn as a nose breathing out. It later came to be used for the word four.

Open 四 →

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

The early shape 十 was mostly a single vertical stroke, sometimes with a dot, and later gained a horizontal stroke to form a cross. For the number ten, it marked the next digit above one.

Open 十 →

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

The shape of 六 may come from a simple drawing of a shed, or from an ancient counting mark.

Open 六 →

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