法学 (fǎ xué) — law (as a field of study), legal studies

Definition

noun

law (as a field of study)legal studies

。
Tā zài dà xué dú fǎ xué.
He studies law at university.
法学。
Wǒ gē ge shì fǎ xué jiào shòu.
My brother is a law professor.
法学。
fǎ xué Zhuān yè de bì yè shēng jiù yè qián jǐng hěn hǎo.
Graduates of law programs have good job prospects.

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.

法 (law) and 学 (study) combine to mean law as a field of study.

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

廌廌zhìa type of antelope or caprid

Sound part声符shēngfú

盍

盍hé法fǎ

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

法's older form combined 氵 (water) and 廌 (a type of antelope or caprid), with 盍 as a sound part; later 廌 was dropped.

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 學; 学 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 學 may have used 爻 and 六 for sound, with hands and a child added later; the simplified 学 is a shorthand.

Appears in