天候 (tiān hòu) — weather | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

天候 is a formal, written term for 'weather', mostly seen in technical or scientific contexts like 气象 and agriculture. 比天气 (the everyday word) more bookish and specialized.

noun

weather

Examples

天候。
Zhè ge jì jié de tiān hòu biàn huà hěn dà.
The weather changes a lot this season.
天候。
Gǔ dài jūn shì jiā men fēi cháng zhù zhòng tiān hòu de yǐng xiǎng.
Ancient military strategists paid great attention to the influence of weather.
天候。
tiān hòu Yù cè duì yú nóng yè shēng chǎn zhì guān zhòng yào.
Weather forecasting is crucial for agricultural production.

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.

天tiānweather

候hòuclimate

天 means sky or weather, and 候 means climate or season, together naming weather.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

丁

丁dīng天tiān

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The shape comes from a frontal standing man 大 with a head; 天 pairs 大 with 丁 for sound.

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

亻Written in full as人rén

Sound part声符shēngfú

矦

矦hóu候hòu

Same sound today

候 combines 亻, relating to people, with 矦, which gives the sound.

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