氙 (xiān) — xenon (chemical element)

Definition

noun
xenon (chemical element)
Measure word · 种
Easily confused

Examples

  • 氙。
    xiān Shì yì zhǒng duò xìng qì tǐ.
    Xenon is a type of noble gas.
  • 氙。
    Qì chē dà dēng yǒu shí shǐ yòng xiān.
    Car headlights sometimes use xenon.
  • 氙54。
    xiān De yuán zǐ xù shù shì 54.
    Xenon's atomic number is 54.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

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
气气qìgas
Sound part声符shēngfú
山
山shān氙xiān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

氙 puts 气 (gas) beside 山, which gives the sound; here 山 is a shortened sound part.

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