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接生 (jiē shēng) — to deliver (a baby)

Definition

A medical term meaning to deliver (a baby) — the action of helping a mother give birth, usually by a doctor or midwife.

verb
to deliver (a baby)

Examples

  • ，。
    Tā zuó wǎn jiē le yí gè shēng, mǔ zǐ píng ān.
    She delivered a baby last night; both mother and child are safe.
  • 接生。
    Zhè wèi yī shēng yǐ jīng jiē shēng guò yì bǎi duō gè yīng ér.
    This doctor has delivered over a hundred babies.
  • 接生。
    Wǒ men xū yào yí wèi yǒu jīng yàn de yī shēng lái jiē shēng zhè ge hái zi.
    We need an experienced doctor to deliver this child.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

接jiēreceive
生shēngbirth

接 receives the newborn, and 生 is the birth being caught.

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
扌Written in full as手shǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
妾
妾qiè接jiē
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left part 扌 shows a hand, matching the sense of receiving something in the hand, while 妾 gives the character its sound.

Open 接 →

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

生 shows 屮 (a bud) above 一 (the ground), drawing a sprout coming up from the earth.

Open 生 →
Appears in
Medicine & Treatment

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