盖 (gài) — (noun) lid, cover, top; (verb) to cover, to conceal; (verb) to build (a house, structure)
Definition
盖 covers both the noun ('lid, cover') and the verb ('to cover' / 'to build a house'). For 'to cover', 遮遮 (zhe) is used to block light or conceal faults.
noun
lidcovertop
verb
to coverto concealto build (a house, structure)
Measure word · 个
Examples
- 。Qǐng bǎ guō gài hǎo.Please cover the pot well.
- 。Tā zài gài fáng zi.He is building a house.
- 盖。Bēi zi de gài shì lán sè de.The lid of the cup is blue.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost 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 蓋; 盖 is its simplified writing.
Meaning part形符xíngfú
艸艸cǎograss
Sound part声符shēngfú
盍
盍hé蓋gài
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.
The traditional form 蓋 pairs 艸, grass, with 盍 for sound. It was a thatch, and it took on cover meanings after 盍 was borrowed for “why not”.
Appears in
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