市镇 (shì zhèn) — small town; town

Definition

noun
small towntown
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 市镇，。
    Zhè ge shì zhèn suī rán bú dà, dàn hěn rè nao.
    Although this small town isn't big, it's very lively.
  • 市镇。
    Tā chū shēng zài yí gè nán fāng shì zhèn.
    He was born in a small southern town.
  • 市镇。
    shì zhèn Lǐ de jū mín dà duō hù xiāng rèn shi.
    Most residents in the town know each other.

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.

市shìmarket
镇zhèntown

市 and 镇 both refer to market towns, so together they mean a town or small town.

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
兮兮xībustling
Sound part声符shēngfú
之
之zhī市shì
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The old form 市 pairs 兮, meaning bustling, with 之, the sound part.

Open 市 →

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 鎮; 镇 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
金金jīnmetal
Sound part声符shēngfú
真
真zhēn鎮zhèn
Same sound today

The traditional form 鎮 uses 金, metal, and 真, which gave its sound; it depicted pressing down with a metal weight. The simplified 镇 is a later abbreviation.

Open 镇 →

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