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消退 (xiāo tuì) — to wane; to recede; to fade away

Definition

verb
to waneto recedeto fade away

Examples

  • 消退。
    Tā de rè qíng zhú jiàn xiāo tuì le.
    His enthusiasm gradually waned.
  • 消退。
    Hóng shuǐ zhōng yú zài sān tiān hòu xiāo tuì le.
    The flood finally receded after three days.
  • 消退。
    Zhè zhǒng yào kě yǐ ràng téng tòng xùn sù xiāo tuì.
    This medicine can make the pain fade quickly.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

消xiāodisappear
退tuìrecede

消 (disappear) and 退 (recede) both describe something fading away.

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
肖
肖xiào消xiāo
Same sound today

消 has 氵 (water) beside 肖. The water part connects to putting out or making something vanish, and 肖 gives the sound.

Open 消 →

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

  • 皀皀jífood vessel
  • 夊夊suīdownward foot

退 originally showed 皀, a food vessel, with 夊, a downward foot, for leaving the table after eating. In modern 退, the vessel part 皀 changed into an unrelated shape.

Open 退 →
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