昨日 (zuó rì) — yesterday | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

yesterday

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.

昨zuóyesterday

昨 “yesterday” specifies the day named by 日, giving “yesterday”.

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.

日乍昨

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

乍

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

昨 pairs 日 (sun/day) with 乍, which gives the sound and may also carry the sense “at first,” relating to an earlier day.

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

日 originally drew the sun. A mark was added inside to tell it apart from similar square shapes.

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