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沙滩 (shā tān) — beach; sandy shore

Definition

沙滩 means 'beach / sandy shore' by water — the stretch of sand itself, not a desert (沙漠) or loose sand (沙子). Pairs with 海滩 for the same place; 海滨 emphasizes the seaside area as a resort destination.

noun
beachsandy shore
Measure word · 片

Examples

  • 沙滩。
    Wǒ men xià tiān cháng qù shā tān yóu yǒng.
    We often go to the beach to swim in summer.
  • 沙滩。
    Zhōu mò de shā tān shàng rén hěn duō.
    There are many people on the beach on weekends.
  • 沙滩。
    Hǎi biān yǒu yí piàn měi lì de shā tān.
    There is a beautiful stretch of beach by the sea.

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.

沙shāsand
滩tānshore/shoal

沙 sand describes the 滩 shore/shoal, so 沙滩 means a sandy beach.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

沙 puts 少 (dots) beside 水 (water), showing sand on a shoreline.

Open 沙 →

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 灘; 滩 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
氵Written in full as水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
難
難nán灘tān
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In the traditional form 灘, 氵 (water) marks the meaning and 難 gives the sound; the simplified 滩 is a shorthand.

Open 滩 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 5Geography & Landforms5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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