绦虫 (tāo chóng) — tapeworm | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

tapeworm

Measure word · 条

绦虫。
Yī shēng shuō tā tǐ nèi yǒu tāo chóng.
The doctor said he has tapeworms in his body.
绦虫。
Zhè zhǒng tāo chóng kě yǐ cháng dào hěn cháng.
This kind of tapeworm can grow very long.
绦虫。
Chī le bù gān jìng de shí wù kě néng huì gǎn rǎn tāo chóng.
Eating unclean food may lead to tapeworm infection.

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.

绦tāoribbon

绦 gives the ribbon-like shape, and 虫 names the worm.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 絛; 绦 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

糸糸mì

Sound part声符shēngfú

攸

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 絛 is built from 糸, silk, and 攸, which supplies the pronunciation; the simplified 绦 is a later shorthand.

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.