茶壶 (chá hú) — teapot

Definition

noun
teapot
Measure word ·

Examples

  • 茶壶
    Zhè bǎ chá hú shì zǐ shā zuò de, pào chá tè bié hǎo hē.
    This teapot is made of purple clay, and it makes tea taste especially good.
  • 茶壶
    Tā měi tiān dōu huì yòng chá hú gěi kè rén dǎo chá.
    Every day she uses a teapot to pour tea for guests.
  • 茶壶
    Xiǎo xīn bié dǎ suì chá hú, nà shì hěn guì de gǔ dǒng.
    Be careful not to break the teapot — it's a very expensive antique.

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.

茶 is tea, and 壶 is a pot, so the word names a teapot.

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
Written in full ascǎo
Sound part声符shēngfú
chá
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In 茶, the 艹 part marks a plant, and the 余 part gives the sound.

Open 茶 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 壶 →

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