矩 (jǔ) — (bound form) rule, standard, carpenter's square
Definition
A bound form used inside set words: 矩形 means 'rectangle' (as the examples show), 循规蹈矩 means 'to follow the rules'. On its own 矩 is not used as a standalone word.
bound form
rulestandardcarpenter's square
Examples
- ，。Zhè ge jǔ xíng de zhuō zi hěn dà, kě yǐ zuò bā gè rén.This rectangular table is very big — it can seat eight people.
- ，。Zài jǐ hé kè shàng, wǒ men xué le jǔ xíng de miàn jī gōng shì.In geometry class, we learned the formula for the area of a rectangle.
- ，。Tā zuò shì yí xiàng xún guī dǎo jǔ, hěn shǎo chū cuò.He always follows the rules and rarely makes mistakes.
Origin
Pictograph六书liùshū
象形xiàngxíngA drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.
The shape of 矩 came from a picture of a man holding a carpenter's square.
Appears in
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