旗舰 (qí jiàn) — flagship (most important product, store, or bra… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

旗 (flag) + 舰 (warship): literally 'flagship', now a metaphor for a company's most important product, store, or model. Almost always used as an attributive before another noun (旗舰店, 旗舰产品).

noun

flagship (most important product, store, or brand within a company's range)

Examples

旗舰。
Zhè jiā gōng sī tuī chū le xīn de qí jiàn chǎn pǐn.
This company launched a new flagship product.
旗舰。
Tā men zài shì zhōng xīn kāi shè le yì jiā qí jiàn diàn.
They opened a flagship store in the city center.
旗舰。
Zhè kuǎn shǒu jī shì pǐn pái de qí jiàn xíng hào.
This phone is the brand's flagship model.

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.

旗 is a flag and 舰 is a ship, so the word names the ship carrying the admiral's flag.

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

㫃㫃㫃flag

Sound part声符shēngfú

其

其qí旗qí

Same sound today

旗 pairs 㫃, a flag, with 其, which gives the pronunciation qí.

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 艦; 舰 is its simplified writing.

舟監艦

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

監

監jiān艦⁰jiàn

Same sound today

The traditional form 艦 pairs 舟 (boat) with 監 to give the sound; the simplified 舰 is a shorthand and its right side is not the historical sound part.

Appears in

Business & Commerce Boats & Water Travel

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