蚊虫 (wén chóng) — mosquitoes; biting insects

Definition

noun
mosquitoesbiting insects
Measure word · 只
Easily confused

Examples

  • 蚊虫，。
    Xià tiān wén chóng hěn duō, yào zhù yì fáng wén.
    There are many mosquitoes in summer, so be careful to prevent bites.
  • 蚊虫。
    Zhè zhǒng yào shuǐ kě yǐ qū chú wén chóng.
    This kind of spray can repel mosquitoes.
  • 蚊虫。
    Wǒ bèi wén chóng yǎo le hǎo jǐ gè bāo.
    I was bitten by mosquitoes and got several bumps.

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.

蚊wénmosquito
虫chónginsect

蚊 names the mosquito, and 虫 places it among insects.

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
虫虫chónginsect
Sound part声符shēngfú
文
文wén蚊wén
Same sound today

蚊 pairs 虫 (insect) with 文, which gives the sound.

Open 蚊 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 蟲; 虫 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 蟲 is the one the reference discusses; 虫 is also a traditional character on its own.

Open 虫 →

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