舰长 (jiàn zhǎng) — captain (of a warship)

Definition

noun

captain (of a warship)

Measure word · 位

舰长。
Tā shì yí wèi jīng yàn fēng fù de jiàn zhǎng.
He is an experienced captain.
舰长。
jiàn zhǎng Zài zhǐ huī shì lǐ xià dá mìng lìng.
The captain gave orders in the command room.
舰长。
Zhè sōu jūn jiàn de jiàn zhǎng fēi cháng yán gé.
The captain of this warship is very strict.

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.

舰 names a warship and 长 names its chief, together giving the captain of a warship.

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 艦; 舰 is its simplified writing.

舟監艦

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

監

監jiān艦⁰jiàn

Same sound today

The traditional form 艦 pairs 舟 (boat) with 監 to give the sound; the simplified 舰 is a shorthand and its right side is not the historical sound part.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 長; 长 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 長 pictures an old man with long hair. The simplified 长 is a later shorthand, so its strokes do not show that original picture.

Appears in