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小车 (xiǎo chē) — handcart, wheelbarrow; small car, sedan

Definition

Literally "small vehicle" — covers two distinct senses: a sedan/small car (measured with 辆) and a handcart or wheelbarrow (pushed by hand). Pick the sense that fits the verb: 坐/开 for a car, 推/拉 for a handcart.

noun
handcartwheelbarrowsmall carsedan
Measure word · 辆

Examples

  • 小车。
    Tā yòng xiǎo chē yùn le yì duī shā zi.
    He used a wheelbarrow to move a pile of sand.
  • 小车，。
    Tā de xīn xiǎo chē shì bái sè de, fēi cháng piào liang.
    His new car is white and very beautiful.
  • 小车，。
    Zhè liàng xiǎo chē suī rán xiǎo, dàn pǎo dé hěn kuài.
    This small car is small but runs very fast.

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.

小xiǎosmall
车chēvehicle

小 means small and 车 means vehicle, so the word denotes a small vehicle or handcart.

Characters in this word

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

  • 八八bāto divide; to separate
  • 丨丨gǔnsmall object

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.

Open 小 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 車; 车 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 車 was drawn as a carriage seen from above, with wheels on both sides and a shaft at the front; the simplified 车 is a later shorthand.

Open 车 →
Appears in
Vehicles

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