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竹节虫 (zhú jié chóng) — stick insect

Definition

noun
stick insect
Measure word · 只

Examples

  • 竹节虫。
    Wǒ zài sēn lín lǐ kàn dào le yì zhī zhú jié chóng.
    I saw a stick insect in the forest.
  • 竹节虫，。
    zhú jié chóng De yán sè hé shù zhī hěn xiàng, hěn nán bèi fā xiàn.
    The stick insect's color is very similar to tree branches, making it hard to find.
  • 竹节虫。
    Zhè zhǒng zhú jié chóng zhǔ yào shēng huó zài rè dài yǔ lín lǐ.
    This kind of stick insect mainly lives in tropical rainforests.

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.

竹节bamboo joint
竹zhúbamboo节jiéjoint
偏正Modifier + head
虫chónginsect

It is a 虫 shaped like a 竹节, a bamboo joint.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 節; 节 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
⺮Written in full as竹zhúbamboo
Sound part声符shēngfú
即
即jí節jié
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 節 pairs ⺮ (bamboo) with 即, which gives the sound; the bamboo part points to a node of bamboo. The simplified 节 is a later abbreviation.

Open 节 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 蟲; 虫 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 蟲 is the one the reference discusses; 虫 is also a traditional character on its own.

Open 虫 →
Appears in
Insects

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