种子选手 (zhǒng zi xuǎn shǒu) — seeded player (in a tournament)

Definition

A player ranked highly enough that the tournament bracket places them so they only meet other top players in the later rounds. The 种子 literally means 'seed' — borrowed from the English tournament term.

noun
seeded player (in a tournament)
Measure word · 位

Examples

  • 种子选手。
    Zhè wèi zhǒng zi xuǎn shǒu zài qù nián de bǐ sài zhōng huò dé le guàn jūn.
    This seeded player won the championship in last year's tournament.
  • 种子选手，。
    Zuò wéi zhǒng zi xuǎn shǒu, tā bú yòng cān jiā dì yī lún de yù xuǎn sài.
    As a seeded player, he doesn't have to participate in the first round of qualifiers.
  • 种子选手。
    Zhè cì bǐ sài de zhǒng zi xuǎn shǒu míng dān yǐ jīng gōng bù le.
    The list of seeded players for this competition has been announced.

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.

种子seed
种zhǒngseed子zǐsuffix
后缀Suffix
选手player
选xuǎnselected手shǒuperson
偏正Modifier + head

种子 (seed) + 选手 (player): a player placed by seeding.

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
禾禾hérice
Sound part声符shēngfú
中
中zhōng种zhǒng
Same sound today

种 pairs 禾, which shows rice or grain and fits meanings like plant and seed, with 中, which gives its sound.

Open 种 →

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

子 is drawn as a baby with a large head, arms stretched out, and legs wrapped in a blanket.

Open 子 →

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 選; 选 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
止止zhǐ
Sound part声符shēngfú
巽
巽xùn選xuǎn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 選 combines 止 with 巽, which gives the sound xùn; its sense of choosing is explained as rejecting or sending someone back. Simplified 选 is a shorthand.

Open 选 →

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

手 draws a five-fingered human hand: the top line is a bent middle finger, and the horizontal lines show the other four fingers.

Open 手 →

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