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水域 (shuǐ yù) — body of water; waters

Definition

水域 (shuǐ yù) names a body of water as a region or area (e.g. a river, lake, or sea zone), not its surface. Compare 海域 (sea area) and 水面 (water surface).

noun
body of waterwaters
Measure word · 片

Examples

  • 水域。
    Zhè piàn shuǐ yù shì hòu niǎo de zhòng yào qī xī dì.
    This body of water is an important habitat for migratory birds.
  • 水域。
    Zhèng fǔ zhèng zài bǎo hù zhè piàn shuǐ yù de shēng tài huán jìng.
    The government is protecting the ecological environment of this body of water.
  • 水域。
    Zhè tiáo hé liú shì dāng dì zuì dà de shuǐ yù.
    This river is the largest body of water in the area.

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.

水shuǐwater
域yùregion

水 (“water”) and 域 (“region”) together name an area covered by water.

Characters in this word

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

水 is a simple drawing of water flowing.

Open 水 →

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
土土tǔ
Sound part声符shēngfú
或
或huò域yù
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

域 uses 土, earth or soil, to show it is about land, and 或 to suggest its pronunciation.

Open 域 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Geography & Landforms

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.