坯 (pī) — base, blank, or semifinished product (especially of pottery or manufacturing)
Definition
A technical noun for an unfired or unfinished piece (clay blank, steel billet) that still requires further processing before becoming a finished product.
noun
baseblankor semifinished product (especially of pottery or manufacturing)
Measure word · 个
Easily confused
- 呸pēilook-alike(interjection) pah!, bah!, yuck! — expressing contempt, disgust, or dismissal
- 批pīsound-alike(classifier) for batches, groups, lots
- 胚pēilook-alike(biology) embryo
- 批pīsound-aliketo approve (a document, application, etc.)
- 披pīsound-aliketo drape over one’s shoulders; to put on (as a cloak or scarf)
- 劈pīsound-aliketo split, to chop, to hack
Examples
- 坯，。Zhè xiē táo qì hái zhǐ shì pī, xū yào shāo zhì cái néng yòng.These pottery pieces are still blanks; they need to be fired before use.
- 坯，。Gōng chǎng lǐ duī mǎn le gāng pī, děng dài xià yí bù jiā gōng.The factory is piled with steel blanks, waiting for the next step of processing.
- ，。Zhè ge pī zi de zhì liàng hěn hǎo, zuò chū lái de chéng pǐn yí dìng bú cuò.The quality of this blank is very good; the finished product will definitely be good.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.
Sound part声符shēngfú
丕
丕pī坯pī
Same sound today
坯 puts 土 beside 丕, with 土 giving the meaning and 丕 giving the sound.
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