歌剧 (gē jù) — opera (Western opera) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

歌剧 (gējù) means Western opera — a staged drama sung to orchestral music, distinct from Chinese traditional forms like 京剧 or 戏曲.

noun

opera (Western opera)

Measure word · 场, 出

Examples

歌剧，。
Zhè bù gē jù hěn yǒu míng, hěn duō rén dōu kàn guò.
This opera is very famous, many people have seen it.
歌剧。
Shàng ge yuè tā kàn le yì chǎng gē jù.
She watched an opera last month.
歌剧？
Nǐ xǐ huan tīng gē jù hái shì tīng liú xíng yīn yuè?
Do you prefer listening to opera or pop music?

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.

歌gēsinging

歌 relates to singing, and 剧 is a drama; together they mean a sung drama.

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.

哥欠歌

Meaning part形符xíngfú

欠欠qiànblow

Sound part声符shēngfú

哥

哥gē歌gē

Same sound today

The shape 歌 uses 哥 for the sound and 欠, meaning blow. It came from a form of 哥 used for singing.

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.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Film & Theater Music

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