大漠 (dà mò) — large desert

Definition

Literary, written word for a vast, barren desert — evoking sand, wind, and emptiness. Stronger in style than the everyday 沙漠, often used in prose or poetry.

noun
large desert
Measure word · 片

Examples

  • 大漠。
    Tā zài dà mò zhōng zǒu le sān tiān sān yè.
    He walked in the desert for three days and three nights.
  • 大漠。
    dà mò De fēng shā ràng rén zhēng bù kāi yǎn jing.
    The desert sand and wind make it impossible to open one's eyes.
  • 大漠。
    Yuǎn chù shì wú biān wú jì de dà mò.
    In the distance is an endless desert.

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.

大dàvast
漠mòdesert

It names a vast 大 漠, a large desert.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
水水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
莫
莫mò漠mò
Same sound today

漠 pairs 水 (water) with 莫 as the sound part. The water part shows the meaning is connected to water.

Open 漠 →

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