曲线图 (qū xiàn tú) — line graph; curve chart

Definition

noun

line graphcurve chart

Measure word · 张

曲线图。
Zhè zhāng qū xiàn tú xiǎn shì le jīn nián de xiāo shòu zēng zhǎng.
This line graph shows this year's sales growth.
曲线图。
Qǐng gēn jù qū xiàn tú zhōng de shù jù xiě chū bào gào.
Please write a report based on the data in the line graph.
曲线图，。
Zhè ge qū xiàn tú de héng zhóu dài biǎo shí jiān, zòng zhóu dài biǎo wēn dù.
The horizontal axis of this line graph represents time, and the vertical axis represents temperature.

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.

曲线curve

偏正Modifier + head

图túdiagram

曲 means bent, 线 means line; together with 图, a chart, they describe a diagram of curves.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

曲 is drawn as a bent object, matching the meaning 'bend'.

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.

糹泉線

Meaning part形符xíngfú

糹Written in full as糸mì

Sound part声符shēngfú

泉

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.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 圖; 图 is its simplified writing.

囗啚圖

The traditional form 圖 pairs 囗, a walled city, with 啚, an early form meaning remote areas or territory. The simplified 图 is a later abbreviation.