汽笛声 (qì dí shēng) — sound of a steam whistle or siren (e.g., from a train, ship, or factory)

Definition

noun
sound of a steam whistle or siren (e.g., from a train, ship, or factory)

Examples

  • 汽笛声。
    Yuǎn chù chuán lái yí zhèn qì dí shēng.
    A sound of a steam whistle came from afar.
  • ，汽笛声。
    Huǒ chē jìn zhàn shí, qì dí shēng xiǎng le qǐ lái.
    When the train entered the station, the whistle sounded.
  • 汽笛声。
    Qīng chén de qì dí shēng dǎ pò le gǎng kǒu de níng jìng.
    The morning steam whistle broke the quiet of the harbor.

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.

汽笛steam whistle
汽qìsteam笛díwhistle
偏正Modifier + head
声shēngsound

汽 gives steam and 笛 gives whistle, and 声 gives sound, for a whistle or siren sound.

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
氵Written in full as水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
气
气qì汽
Same sound today

The 氵 part is water, and 气 is used for the sound and also means air, so 汽 shows water in an air-like form.

Open 汽 →

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
竹竹zhúbamboo
Sound part声符shēngfú
由
由yóu笛dí
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

笛 pairs 竹 (bamboo) with 由 as a sound part. The bamboo part shows the object is made of bamboo.

Open 笛 →

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 聲; 声 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
耳耳ěrear
Sound part声符shēngfú
殸
殸qìng聲shēng
Same sound today

The traditional form 聲 pairs 耳 (ear) with 殸 as a sound part; the simplified 声 is a shorthand and does not show those original parts.

Open 声 →

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