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竹竿 (zhú gān) — bamboo pole

Definition

竹竿 is a bamboo POLE — a long, rigid piece of bamboo cut for use (e.g. drying clothes, making fishing rods). 竹子 is the plant/material itself; 杆 is a general word for any stick-like object.

noun
bamboo pole
Measure word · 根

Examples

  • 竹竿。
    Tā bǎ yī fu liàng zài zhú gān shàng.
    He hung the clothes to dry on the bamboo pole.
  • 竹竿。
    Yé ye yòng zhú gān zuò le yì gēn yú gān.
    Grandpa used a bamboo pole to make a fishing rod.
  • 竹竿。
    Xiǎo xīn bié ràng zhú gān dǎo xià lái.
    Be careful not to let the bamboo pole fall over.

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.

竹zhúbamboo
竿gānpole

竹 is bamboo and 竿 is a pole, so 竹竿 names a bamboo pole.

Characters in this word

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

竹 pictures two bamboo stalks with leaves.

Open 竹 →

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
竹竹zhúbamboo
Sound part声符shēngfú
干
干gān竿gān
Same sound today

竿 uses 竹, bamboo, to mark the material, with 干 giving the sound.

Open 竿 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Miscellaneous ObjectsPlants & Flowers

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