清早 (qīng zǎo) — early morning (colloquial) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Colloquial noun for 'early morning' (around dawn). More casual and vivid than 早上, which covers any morning hour.

noun

early morning (colloquial)

Examples

清早。
Wǒ měi tiān qīng zǎo qǐ chuáng qù duàn liàn.
I get up early every morning to exercise.
清早。
qīng zǎo De kōng qì tè bié xīn xiān.
The air is especially fresh in the early morning.
清早。
Tā men qīng zǎo jiù chū fā le.
They set out early in the morning.

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.

早zǎomorning

清 gives the sense of early and 早 gives the morning, so early morning.

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.

氵青清

Meaning part形符xíngfú

氵Written in full as水shuǐwater

Sound part声符shēngfú

青

青qīng清qīng

Same sound today

清 has 氵 (water) on the left and 青 on the right to show its sound.

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

日日rìsun

Sound part声符shēngfú

棗

棗zǎo早zǎo

Same sound today

The form 早 pairs 日 (sun) with 棗, which gives the sound; an earlier shape of 早 was a picture of an acorn.

Appears in

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