盒带 (hé dài) — cassette tape

Definition

Literal compound: 盒 ('box/case') + 带 ('tape'). Refers specifically to a cassette tape in its plastic housing — an older audio format now rarely seen, as the examples note.

noun
cassette tape
Measure word · 盘

Examples

  • 盒带。
    Wǒ mǎi le yì pán hé dài.
    I bought a cassette tape.
  • 盒带，。
    Tā zài tīng hé dài, qǐng bú yào dǎ rǎo tā.
    He's listening to a cassette tape; please don't disturb him.
  • 盒带。
    Zhè zhǒng hé dài xiàn zài yǐ jīng hěn shǎo jiàn le.
    This kind of cassette tape is already very rare nowadays.

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.

盒hébox
带dàitape

盒 refers to the small case and 带 to the tape inside, together naming a cassette tape.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 盒 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 帶; 带 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 帶 was drawn as a woven belt; the simplified 带 is a later shorthand.

Open 带 →

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