沙金 (shā jīn) — placer gold, alluvial gold

Definition

Gold that has been worn down into flakes or grains by water and collects in sand and riverbeds — the form that is panned, not mined from solid rock.

noun
placer goldalluvial gold

Examples

  • 沙金。
    Zhè piàn hé lǐ kě yǐ táo shā jīn.
    You can pan for placer gold in this river.
  • 沙金。
    Tā zhǎo dào le yì xiē shā jīn.
    He found some placer gold.
  • 沙金。
    Zhè zhǒng shā jīn de chún dù hěn gāo.
    This type of placer gold has high purity.

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
金jīngold

沙 meaning sand and 金 meaning gold name gold found in sandy deposits.

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.

金 was drawn with marks for two pieces of metal, along with a part that gave its sound; it first meant copper, then metals and gold.

Open 金 →

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