滩 (tān) — beach; shoal; sandbank (bound form, used in compounds)
Definition
滩 (tān) is a bound form meaning a flat stretch of sand or pebbles by water — used in compounds like 海滩 (seabeach) and 河滩 (river shoal). It cannot stand alone as a word.
bound form
beachshoalsandbank (bound form, used in compounds)
Examples
- 。Xià tiān hěn duō rén qù hǎi tān yóu yǒng.In summer many people go to the beach to swim.
- ，。Zhè piàn shā tān yòu xì yòu ruǎn, hěn shì hé sàn bù.This stretch of sandy beach is fine and soft, great for walking.
- ，。Hé shuǐ tuì qù hòu, hé tān shàng liú xià le hěn duō bèi ké.After the river receded, many shells were left on the river shoal.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost 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.
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.
Appears in
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