普尔 (pǔ ěr) — (bound morpheme) component in transliterations, used in proper names such as surnames

Definition

A bound syllable used only in transliterations, typically as part of a foreign-sounding surname or proper name. It is not a word on its own and must be attached to other characters.

noun
(bound morpheme) component in transliterations, used in proper names such as surnames

Examples

  • 普尔。
    Zhè wèi shì pǔ ěr xiān sheng.
    This is Mr. Pu'er.
  • 普尔，。
    Wǒ xìng pǔ ěr, míng zì jiào xiǎo míng.
    My surname is Pu'er, and my given name is Xiaoming.
  • 普尔。
    Tā men gōng sī jiào pǔ ěr kē jì.
    Their company is called Puer Technology.

Origin

Single-morpheme word
构词法gòucífǎ
音译yīnyìTransliteration

The characters spell the sound of a foreign word; their individual meanings play no part.

普pǔ
尔ěr

普尔 spells a foreign sound in names such as surnames; the characters carry no meaning of their own here.

Sound-only characters

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

  • 並並bìngside by side
  • 日日rìsun

普 is made of 日 (sun) and 並 (side by side).

Open 普 →

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

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 爾; 尔 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 爾, simplified as 尔, originally drew cloth on a loom with crossing threads. It was borrowed for its sound to write “you,” so the picture is unrelated to that meaning.

Open 尔 →

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