肚脐 (dù qí) — navel, belly button | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

navelbelly button

Measure word · 个

Examples

肚脐。
Yīng ér de dù qí chū shēng hòu xū yào xiǎo xīn hù lǐ.
A baby's navel needs careful care after birth.
肚脐。
Tā chuān le yí jiàn lù dù qí de shàng yī.
She wore a top that showed her belly button.
肚脐。
Yī shēng jiǎn chá le bìng rén de dù qí zhōu wéi shì fǒu yǒu gǎn rǎn.
The doctor checked around the patient's navel for infection.

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.

肚, belly, and 脐, navel, together name the navel on the belly.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

⺼Written in full as肉ròu

Sound part声符shēngfú

土

土tǔ肚dù

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

The left side ⺼ is 肉 (flesh), marking body parts like belly; the right side 土 gives the pronunciation.

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 臍; 脐 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

肉肉ròumeat; flesh

Sound part声符shēngfú

齊

齊qí臍qí

Same sound today

The traditional form 臍 pairs 肉 (meat/flesh) with 齊, which gives the sound; the simplified 脐 is a later abbreviation.

Appears in

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