苗子 (miáo zǐ) — promising young person; future successor; seedling; young plant; early sign; symptom of a trend

Definition

Literally a 'seedling,' 苗子 figuratively means a 'promising young person' (a person with talent to grow into) and, by extension, 'early signs' of a developing trend.

noun
promising young personfuture successorseedlingyoung plantearly signsymptom of a trend
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 苗子，。
    Zhè ge nián qīng rén shì gè hǎo miáo zǐ, gōng sī zhòng diǎn péi yǎng tā.
    This young person is a promising talent; the company is focusing on developing him.
  • 苗子。
    Dì lǐ gāng cháng chū lái de miáo zǐ xū yào duō jiāo shuǐ.
    The seedlings that just sprouted in the field need more watering.
  • 苗子。
    Cóng zhè xiē shù jù lǐ néng kàn chū jīng jì fù sū de miáo zǐ.
    From this data, you can see early signs of an economic recovery.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

苗miáoyoung plant
子zǐ

The 苗 plant sense plus 子 gives a seedling or promising young person.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

It is made from 艸 (grass) and 田 (field), showing plants in a field, which matches the meaning of a young plant or seedling.

Open 苗 →

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

子 is drawn as a baby with a large head, arms stretched out, and legs wrapped in a blanket.

Open 子 →

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