报晓 (bào xiǎo) — to herald the dawn (of a rooster announcing daybreak)

Definition

报晓 means a rooster heralding the dawn by crowing at daybreak — used almost exclusively of cock-crow, not a general verb for 'announce'. It is a literary, written-style verb.

verb
to herald the dawn (of a rooster announcing daybreak)

Examples

  • 报晓，。
    Gōng jī bào xiǎo, tiān liàng le.
    The rooster heralded the dawn; it's light out.
  • 。
    Zhè zhī gōng jī měi tiān zhǔn shí bào yī shēng xiǎo.
    This rooster crows exactly on time every morning.
  • 报晓。
    Yuǎn chù chuán lái gōng jī bào xiǎo de shēng yīn.
    From afar comes the sound of a rooster heralding the dawn.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

报bàoannounce
晓xiǎodawn

报 means announce and 晓 is dawn; together they mean to herald daybreak.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 報; 报 is its simplified writing.

  • 㚔㚔㚔handcuffs
  • 𠬝𠬝𠬝to subdue

The traditional form 報 puts 㚔 (handcuffs) beside 𠬝 (to subdue), showing someone restrained and subdued, as in convicting or punishing a guilty person. The simplified 报 is a later shorthand.

Open 报 →

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 曉; 晓 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
日日rìsun
Sound part声符shēngfú
堯
堯yáo曉xiǎo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 曉 puts 日, a sun, beside 堯, which gives the sound; the simplified 晓 is a shorthand and its right side is not that sound part.

Open 晓 →

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