炸弹 (zhà dàn) — bomb

Definition

炸弹 is the finished device that explodes — a 'bomb' as a whole object (a bomb on a plane, a letter bomb). 炸药 is just the explosive material inside, and 轰炸 is the verb 'to bomb' (an action, e.g. from a plane).

noun
bomb
Measure word · 枚, 颗

Examples

  • 炸弹。
    Kǒng bù fèn zǐ zài guǎng chǎng shàng yǐn bào le yì méi zhà dàn.
    The terrorists detonated a bomb in the square.
  • 炸弹。
    Zhè kē zhà dàn de wēi lì fēi cháng dà.
    The power of this bomb is very great.
  • 炸弹。
    Jǐng fāng fā xiàn le yì méi wèi bào zhà de zhà dàn.
    The police found an unexploded bomb.

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.

炸zhàexploding
弹tánprojectile

炸 gives the idea of exploding, and 弹 is a projectile, giving the sense of a bomb.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 炸 →

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 彈; 弹 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
弓弓gōng
Sound part声符shēngfú
單
單dān彈tán
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 彈 pairs 弓 (bow) with the sound part 單; the simplified 弹 is a shorthand.

Open 弹 →
Appears in
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