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木偶剧 (mù ǒu jù) — puppet show, puppet play

Definition

noun
puppet showpuppet play
Measure word · 场

Examples

  • 木偶剧。
    Wǒ xiǎo shí hou hěn xǐ huan kàn mù ǒu jù.
    I really liked watching puppet shows when I was little.
  • 木偶剧。
    Zhè ge mù ǒu jù jiǎng le yí gè yǒu qù de gù shi.
    This puppet show tells an interesting story.
  • 木偶剧。
    Tā men zhèng zài zhǔn bèi yì chǎng xīn de mù ǒu jù.
    They are preparing a new puppet play.

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.

木偶puppet
木mùwood偶ǒupuppet
偏正Modifier + head
剧jùdrama

A 剧 about 木偶, with 木 meaning wood and 偶 meaning puppet.

Characters in this word

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

木 is drawn as a tree, with branches above and roots below.

Open 木 →

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
亻Written in full as人rénperson
Sound part声符shēngfú
禺
禺yú偶ǒu
Same sound today

偶 pairs 亻 (person) with 禺 for the sound. The evidence describes it as a statue of a person, an idol.

Open 偶 →

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 劇; 剧 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
刀刀dāoknife
Sound part声符shēngfú
豦
豦jù劇jù
Same sound today

The traditional form 劇 pairs 豦, which gives the sound, with 刀, a knife; the simplified 剧 is a later shorthand.

Open 剧 →
Appears in
Film & Theater

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