核酸 (hé suān) — nucleic acid | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

nucleic acid

核酸。
Yī yuàn yāo qiú suǒ yǒu zhù yuàn bìng rén zuò hé suān jiǎn cè.
The hospital requires all inpatients to take a nucleic acid test.
核酸。
hé suān Jiǎn cè jié guǒ yào děng jǐ gè xiǎo shí cái néng chū lái.
It takes several hours to get the nucleic acid test result.
核酸。
Zhè zhǒng bìng dú hán yǒu tè shū de hé suān xù liè.
This virus contains a special nucleic acid sequence.

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.

核hénucleus

核 as nucleus plus 酸 as acid names an acid associated with the nucleus.

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.

木亥核

Meaning part形符xíngfú

木木mùtree

Sound part声符shēngfú

亥

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

核 pairs 木, a tree, with 亥 to give its sound; it originally named a kind of tree, and its later meanings are borrowed.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

酉夋酸

Meaning part形符xíngfú

酉酉yǒu

Sound part声符shēngfú

夋

夋qūn酸suān

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

酸 is built from 酉 and 夋, and 夋 gives the sound.