子午线 (zǐ wǔ xiàn) — meridian (geography)

Definition

noun

meridian (geography)

Measure word · 条

子午线。
Běn chū zǐ wǔ xiàn shì líng dù jīng xiàn.
The prime meridian is the zero-degree line of longitude.
，子午线。
Háng hǎi shí, chuán zhǎng yòng zǐ wǔ xiàn lái què dìng wèi zhì.
When sailing, the captain uses meridians to determine position.
子午线。
Dì lǐ kè shàng wǒ men xué le zǐ wǔ xiàn hé wěi xiàn.
In geography class we learned about meridians and parallels.

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.

子午north-south

联合Side by side

子 and 午 stand for north and south, and 线 is a line, so 子午线 is a north-south meridian.

Characters in this word

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

子 is drawn as a baby with a large head, arms stretched out, and legs wrapped in a blanket.

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

The shape of 午 comes from a drawing of a pestle, a heavy tool used for pounding.

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 線; 线 is its simplified writing.

糹泉線

Meaning part形符xíngfú

糹Written in full as糸mì

Sound part声符shēngfú

泉

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

The traditional form 線 uses 糹 (silk/thread) to show the meaning and 泉 to suggest the sound; the simplified 线 is a later shorthand.