手术刀 (shǒu shù dāo) — scalpel | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

scalpel

Measure word · 把

Examples

手术刀。
Yī shēng yòng shǒu shù dāo jìn xíng jīng xì de shǒu shù.
The doctor uses a scalpel to perform delicate surgery.
，。
Zhè bǎ shǒu shù dāo fēi cháng fēng lì, xū yào xiǎo xīn shǐ yòng.
This scalpel is very sharp and needs to be used carefully.
手术刀。
Shǒu shù tái shàng fàng zhe yì bǎ xīn de shǒu shù dāo.
A new scalpel is placed on the operating table.

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.

手术surgery

手shǒu术shù

手术 means surgery, and 刀 marks it as a blade.

Characters in this word

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

手 draws a five-fingered human hand: the top line is a bent middle finger, and the horizontal lines show the other four fingers.

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 術; 术 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

行行xíngstreet, path

Sound part声符shēngfú

朮

朮zhú術shù

Same sound today

The traditional form 術 has 行 (street, path) beside 朮, which gives the sound; the simplified 术 is a later shorthand.

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

The shape of 刀 comes from a simple picture of a knife.

Appears in

Medicine & Treatment

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