玉蜀黍 (yù shǔ shǔ) — corn, maize | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

cornmaize

Measure word · 个

玉蜀黍。
Zhè zhǒng yù shǔ shǔ zài běi fāng zhòng dé hěn duō.
This type of corn is widely grown in the north.
玉蜀黍，。
yù shǔ shǔ Kě yǐ zuò chéng hěn duō zhǒng shí wù, bǐ rú bào mǐ huā.
Corn can be made into many kinds of food, such as popcorn.
玉蜀黍。
Nóng mín men zhèng zài shōu yù shǔ shǔ.
The farmers are harvesting corn.

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.

蜀黍grain

玉 suggests jade-like, while 蜀黍 names the grain; together they denote maize.

Characters in this word

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

玉 was drawn as a ritual jade piece, or as jade pieces strung together, and was made distinct from 王 by adding a dot.

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

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

黍 shows a cereal plant with a lower part that may be liquid or kernels, though the exact reason for that part is uncertain.