狂犬病 (kuáng quǎn bìng) — rabies | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Literally 'mad-dog disease': rabies. The term names the disease, the standard context for vaccines (疫苗) and prevention (预防).

noun

rabies

Examples

狂犬病。
Bèi gǒu yǎo shāng hòu yào jí shí zhù shè kuáng quǎn bìng yì miáo.
After being bitten by a dog, you should get a rabies vaccine injection promptly.
狂犬病。
Zhè zhǒng kuáng quǎn bìng mù qián hái méi yǒu tè xiào yào.
There is currently no specific drug for this type of rabies.
狂犬病。
Yǎng chǒng wù de rén yí dìng yào zhù yì yù fáng kuáng quǎn bìng.
People who keep pets must be careful to prevent rabies.

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.

狂犬mad dog

狂kuángmad犬quǎndog

偏正Modifier + head

病bìngdisease

狂犬 points to a mad dog and 病 to illness, together naming rabies.

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

犭Written in full as犬quǎndog

Sound part声符shēngfú

㞷

㞷㞷狂kuáng

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

狂 pairs 犭 (dog) with 㞷, which gives the sound; 㞷 is an old form of a character meaning 'to go'.

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

犬 is a drawing of a dog seen from the side.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

疒丙病

Meaning part形符xíngfú

疒疒nèsickness

Sound part声符shēngfú

丙

丙bǐng病bìng

Same sound today

病 pairs 疒, a sickness mark, with 丙, which gives the sound; 丙 also means fire, giving a picture of lying feverishly in bed.

Appears in

Illness & Symptoms

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