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橘子 (jú zi) — tangerine

Definition

橘子 is a small, loose-skinned citrus fruit (tangerine / mandarin). 橙子 is the larger, tighter-skinned orange — use 橘子 for easy-to-peel mandarin-type fruit, 橙子 for a navel-style orange.

noun
tangerine
Measure word · 个, 瓣

Examples

  • 橘子。
    Wǒ mǎi le yí gè jú zi bǐ píng guǒ pián yi hěn duō.
    Tangerines are much cheaper than apples.
  • 橘子。
    Wǒ chī le liǎng bàn jú zi.
    I ate two segments of tangerine.
  • 橘子。
    Zhè xiē jú zi kàn shàng qù hěn xīn xiān.
    These tangerines look very fresh.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

橘jútangerine
子zǐnominalizing suffix

The 橘 part names the tangerine, and 子 gives it the familiar word form.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
木木mù
Sound part声符shēngfú
矞
矞yù橘jú
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

橘 has 木 on the left, showing a tree, and 矞 on the right, giving the sound.

Open 橘 →

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.

Open 子 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5Fruits

Browse more HSK 5 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.