梭子鱼 (suō zǐ yú) — barracuda | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

barracuda

Measure word · 条

Examples

梭子鱼，。
Zhè tiáo suō zǐ yú hěn dà, yǒu yì mǐ duō cháng.
This barracuda is very big, over a meter long.
梭子鱼。
suō zǐ yú De yá chǐ fēi cháng fēng lì.
Barracudas have very sharp teeth.
梭子鱼。
Qián shuǐ shí wǒ kàn dào le jǐ tiáo suō zǐ yú.
I saw several barracudas while diving.

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.

梭子shuttle

梭suōshuttle子zǐsuffix

后缀Suffix

梭子 (shuttle) plus 鱼 (fish) names a fish with a shuttle-like body.

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.

木夋梭

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

夋

夋qūn梭suō

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

梭 is built from 木, the wood part, and 夋, which gives its sound.

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

子 is drawn as a baby with a large head, arms stretched out, and legs wrapped in a blanket.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 魚; 鱼 is its simplified writing.

For 鱼, the traditional form 魚 is a picture of a fish.

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