祖 (zǔ) — (bound form) ancestor; forefather; (bound form) grandfather; (bound form) founder; originator
Definition
祖 (zǔ) is a bound morpheme meaning 'ancestor, forefather' — it almost never stands alone but combines with characters like 先 (祖先 ancestors), 父 (祖父 grandfather), or 国 (祖国 homeland).
bound form
ancestorforefathergrandfatherfounderoriginator
Examples
- 。Wǒ men de zǔ xiān shì cóng běi fāng bān lái de.Our ancestors moved here from the north.
- 。Wǒ zǔ fù nián qīng shí dāng guò lǎo shī.My grandfather worked as a teacher when he was young.
- 。Wǒ men rè ài zì jǐ de zǔ guó.We love our motherland.
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.
祖 was made by adding 示 to 且, and 且 gives the sound.
Appears in
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