球体 (qiú tī) — sphere, spheroid | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

spherespheroid

Measure word · 个

Examples

球体。
Dì qiú shì yí gè jù dà de qiú tī.
Earth is a huge sphere.
球体。
Zhè ge qiú tī shì yòng jīn shǔ zuò de.
This sphere is made of metal.
球体。
Wǒ zài shāng diàn lǐ kàn dào le yí gè piào liang de xiǎo qiú tī.
I saw a beautiful little sphere in the store.

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.

球 names a ball or sphere and 体 names a body, so the word means a ball-shaped body.

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

玉玉yùjade

Sound part声符shēngfú

求

求qiú球qiú

Same sound today

球 is built from 玉, meaning jade, and 求, which gives the sound.

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 體; 体 is its simplified writing.

骨豊體

Meaning part形符xíngfú

骨骨gǔbone

Sound part声符shēngfú

豊

豊lǐ體tǐ

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 體 pairs 骨 (bone) with 豊 as a sound part; this note is about 體, not about the parts of 体.

Appears in

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.