寓 (yù) — (bound form) residence; dwelling (in 公寓, 寓所); (bound form) to imply; to contain a hidden meaning (in 寓意, 寓含); (bound form) to combine A with B (in the structure 寓A于B)
Definition
A bound (combining) form with two main uses: 1) 'reside / dwelling', as in 公寓 apartment; 2) 'imply / contain hidden meaning', as in 寓意 implied meaning, and the structure 寓A于B 'combine A with B'.
bound form
residencedwelling (in 公寓, 寓所)to implyto contain a hidden meaning (in 寓意, 寓含)to combine A with B (in the structure 寓A于B)
Easily confused
- 遇yùsound-alike(bound form) to meet; to encounter
- 欲yùsound-alike(bound form) desire; wish (as in 欲望, 食欲)
- 狱yùsound-alike(bound morpheme) prison, jail
- 浴yùsound-alike(bound morpheme) bath, bathe, wash
- 预yùsound-alike(bound form) in advance, beforehand; pre-
- 玉yùsound-alikejade (a precious stone, often culturally symbolic in Chinese contexts)
Examples
- 。Tā zhù zài chéng jiāo de yí dòng xiǎo xíng gōng yù lǐ.He lives in a small apartment building in the suburbs.
- ，。Zhè zé yù yán suī rán jiǎn duǎn, què fù hán shēn yì.This fable, though brief, contains profound meaning.
- 寓，。Lǎo shī shàn yú yù jiào yú lè, xué shēng xué dé hěn kāi xīn.The teacher is good at combining education with entertainment, so the students enjoy learning.
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.
Meaning part形符xíngfú
宀宀mián
Sound part声符shēngfú
禺
禺yú寓yù
Same sound today
寓 combines 宀, a roof, with 禺, which gives the sound.
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