片麻岩 (piàn mà yán) — gneiss

Definition

noun
gneiss
Measure word · 块

Examples

  • 片麻岩，。
    Zhè zhǒng piàn mà yán de wén lǐ fēi cháng qīng xī, shì hé zuò jiàn zhù cái liào.
    The texture of this gneiss is very clear, making it suitable for building materials.
  • 片麻岩。
    Dì zhì xué jiā zài shān qū fā xiàn le dà miàn jī de piàn mà yán.
    Geologists discovered a large area of gneiss in the mountainous region.
  • 片麻岩，。
    piàn mà yán Shì yì zhǒng biàn zhì yán, yóu huā gāng yán huò chén jī yán jīng guò gāo wēn gāo yā xíng chéng.
    Gneiss is a type of metamorphic rock formed from granite or sedimentary rock under high temperature and pressure.

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.

片麻flaky and rough
片piànflaky麻márough
联合Side by side
岩yánrock

片麻岩 is a rock, 岩, with a 片 'flaky' and 麻 'rough' texture.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 片 →

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

麻 combines 厂 and 𣏟 to represent hemp leaves.

Open 麻 →

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 巖; 岩 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
山山shānmountain
Sound part声符shēngfú
嚴
嚴yán巖yán
Same sound today

The traditional form 巖 combines 山 (mountain) with 嚴, a part that gives the sound; the simplified 岩 is a later shorthand, and its parts are not the original parts.

Open 岩 →

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