绸 (chóu) — (bound morpheme) silk fabric; silk
Definition
绸 (chóu) is a bound morpheme meaning 'silk fabric', almost always paired with another character (丝绸, 绸缎) to name a specific type of silk cloth. Don't use it on its own.
bound form
(bound morpheme) silk fabricsilk
Easily confused
- 稠chóulook-alike(of liquid) thick, dense in consistency
- 筹chóusound-aliketo plan, to prepare
- 调diàolook-alike(verb) to transfer, to move (troops, cadres, personnel)
- 愁chóusound-aliketo worry about, to be anxious about
- 倜tìlook-alike(bound morpheme) used only in 倜傥 (tìtǎng, 'unconventional and elegant')
- 仇chóusound-alikehatred, animosity, enmity
Examples
- 。Zhè tiáo qún zi shì sī chóu zuò de.This skirt is made of silk.
- 。Tā mǎi le yí kuài chóu duàn zuò qí páo.She bought a piece of silk fabric to make a cheongsam.
- 绸。Zhè tiáo chóu zi mō qǐ lái hěn róu ruǎn.This piece of silk cloth feels very soft.
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.
This origin belongs to the traditional form 綢; 绸 is its simplified writing.
Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìsilk
Sound part声符shēngfú
周
周zhōu綢chóu
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.
In the traditional form 綢, the left part 糸 is silk and the right part 周 is used for the sound; the simplified 绸 is a later shorthand.
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