蜂窝 (fēng wō) — honeycomb; something honeycomb-like, e.g., a ce… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

honeycombsomething honeycomb-like, e.g., a cellular network or a honeycomb structure

Measure word · 个

Examples

蜂窝。
Zhè ge fēng wō lǐ yǒu hěn duō fēng mì.
This honeycomb has a lot of honey in it.
蜂窝。
Xiàn dài fēng wō wǎng luò ràng wǒ men dǎ diàn huà gèng fāng biàn.
Modern cellular networks make it more convenient for us to make phone calls.
蜂窝。
Zhè zhǒng cái liào yǒu lèi sì fēng wō de jié gòu.
This material has a honeycomb-like structure.

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.

蜂 (bee) and 窝 (nest) name the bees' cell structure.

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.

虫夆蜂

Meaning part形符xíngfú

虫虫chónginsect

Sound part声符shēngfú

夆

夆páng蜂fēng

Same sound today

蜂 puts 虫, showing an insect, beside 夆, which gives its sound.

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 窩; 窝 is its simplified writing.

穴咼窩

Meaning part形符xíngfú

穴穴xuécave

Sound part声符shēngfú

咼

咼wāi窩wō

Same sound today

The traditional form 窩 uses 穴, a cave, for meaning and 咼 for sound; the simplified 窝 is a later shorthand.

Appears in

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