肉汁 (ròu zhī) — gravy | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

gravy

Examples

肉汁。
Zhè dào cài pèi shàng nóng chóu de ròu zhī wèi dào gèng hǎo.
This dish tastes better with a thick gravy.
肉汁。
Tā xǐ huan bǎ ròu zhī jiāo zài tǔ dòu ní shàng.
He likes to pour gravy over mashed potatoes.
肉汁。
Gǎn ēn jié wǎn cān shǎo bù liǎo huǒ jī hé ròu zhī.
Thanksgiving dinner can't do without turkey and gravy.

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.

肉 gives meat, and 汁 gives juice, making the idea of meat juice or gravy.

Characters in this word

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

The original shape of 肉 showed ribs of an animal’s torso, or simply a slice of meat.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

氵十汁

Meaning part形符xíngfú

氵Written in full as水shuǐwater

Sound part声符shēngfú

十

十shí汁zhī(r)

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

汁 has 氵, a form of 水, on the left and 十 on the right. The water part shows it is about a liquid, and 十 gives the sound.

Appears in

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.