蜗 (wō) — (bound form) snail (used in compounds such as 蜗牛 and 蜗居)
Definition
蜗 (wō) is a bound form used only in compounds like 蜗牛 (snail) and 蜗居 (small cramped dwelling). It never stands alone.
bound form
snail (used in compounds such as 蜗牛 and 蜗居)
Easily confused
Examples
- 。Nà zhī wō niú pá dé hěn màn.That snail crawls very slowly.
- 蜗。Zhè ge chéng shì hěn duō nián qīng rén zhù zài xiǎo wō jū lǐ.Many young people in this city live in small cramped apartments.
- 。wō Niú yù dào wēi xiǎn shí huì suō jìn ké lǐ.When a snail encounters danger, it retracts into its shell.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost 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 蝸; 蜗 is its simplified writing.
Sound part声符shēngfú
咼
咼wāi蝸wō
Same sound today
The traditional form 蝸 pairs 虫 with a sound part 咼; the simplified 蜗 is a shorthand and its right side is not the historical sound part.
Appears in
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