小学 (xiǎo xué) — elementary school, primary school

Definition

小学 is primary/elementary school for young children; combine with 中学 ('middle school') to talk about school levels. The student is 小学生.

noun

elementary schoolprimary school

Measure word · 所

小学。
Zhè ge xiǎo xué hěn dà.
This elementary school is very big.
小学。
Wǒ ér zi shàng xiǎo xué le.
My son is in elementary school.
小学。
Wǒ jiě jie shì xiǎo xué lǎo shī.
My older sister is an elementary school teacher.

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.

小学 is a primary school, the smaller 学/school.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

The shape of 小 comes from three small dots, later elongated into its strokes; the apparent parts 八 and 丨 are a later way of seeing it.

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 學; 学 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 學 may have used 爻 and 六 for sound, with hands and a child added later; the simplified 学 is a shorthand.

Appears in