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拆线 (chāi xiàn) — to have one's stitches removed (after surgery)

Definition

Medical term meaning to have stitches taken out after surgery. 拆 = remove; 线 = thread. Used only in a medical context, not for general thread or string.

verb
to have one's stitches removed (after surgery)

Examples

  • 拆线。
    Tā míng tiān yào qù yī yuàn chāi xiàn.
    He's going to the hospital to get his stitches removed tomorrow.
  • 。
    Yī shēng yǐ jīng gěi tā chāi le xiàn.
    The doctor has already removed his stitches.
  • ，。
    Tā chāi guò yí cì xiàn, huī fù dé hěn hǎo.
    He had his stitches removed once and recovered very well.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

拆chāitake out
线xiànthread

拆 means to take out, and 线 means thread; together they mean removing stitches.

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
手手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
斥
斥chì拆chāi
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

拆 uses 手 to show an action done by hand, with 斥 giving the sound. In an earlier related form, the hand part replaced an earth part to stress the action by hand.

Open 拆 →

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 線; 线 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糹Written in full as糸mì
Sound part声符shēngfú
泉
泉quán線xiàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 線 uses 糹 (silk/thread) to show the meaning and 泉 to suggest the sound; the simplified 线 is a later shorthand.

Open 线 →
Appears in
Medicine & Treatment

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