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大桥 (dà qiáo) — large bridge

Definition

大桥 simply means a large bridge — used for big, notable crossings (over rivers, bays, highways). 座 is the common measure word; for smaller or generic bridges use 桥 alone.

noun
large bridge
Measure word · 座

Examples

  • 大桥。
    Zhè zuò dà qiáo shì qù nián jiàn chéng de.
    This large bridge was completed last year.
  • 大桥。
    Jiāng shàng xīn jiàn le yí zuò dà qiáo.
    A new large bridge was built over the river.
  • 大桥。
    Tā men kāi chē guò le nà zuò dà qiáo.
    They drove across that large bridge.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

The form 大 is a picture of a person standing and facing forward, not of someone stretching their arms.

Open 大 →

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 橋; 桥 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
木木mùwood
Sound part声符shēngfú
喬
喬qiáo橋qiáo
Same sound today

The traditional form 橋 pairs 木 (wood) with 喬 (qiáo), which gave the character its sound; the simplified 桥 is a later abbreviation.

Open 桥 →
Appears in
Buildings & Structures

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