花旗 (huā qí) — (historical or literary) the United States; (noun) Star-Spangled Banner (the U.S. flag)

Definition

花旗 is a historical/literary term for the United States, literally 'flowery-flag' — the old Chinese name for the Stars and Stripes and, by extension, the country. It survives mainly in set compounds like 花旗银行 (Citibank) and 花旗参 (American ginseng).

noun
(historical or literary) the United StatesStar-Spangled Banner (the U.S. flag)

Examples

  • 花旗。
    Tā céng zài huā qí yín háng gōng zuò guò wǔ nián.
    He once worked at Citibank for five years.
  • 花旗。
    Zhè zhǒng huā qí shēn de jià gé bǐ pǔ tōng rén shēn gāo hěn duō.
    This type of American ginseng costs much more than regular ginseng.
  • 花旗。
    Shí jiǔ shì jì yǒu xǔ duō huá rén yí mín dào huā qí guó.
    In the 19th century, many Chinese immigrants moved to the United States (this country).

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.

花huāflower
旗qíflag

花 (flower) and 旗 (flag) name the U.S. flag and the country.

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
艹Written in full as艸cǎograss; plant
Sound part声符shēngfú
化
化huà花
Same sound today

花 pairs 艹 (grass; plant) with 化, which gives the sound.

Open 花 →

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
㫃㫃㫃flag
Sound part声符shēngfú
其
其qí旗qí
Same sound today

旗 pairs 㫃, a flag, with 其, which gives the pronunciation qí.

Open 旗 →

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