蜥蜴 (xī yì) — lizard

Definition

noun
lizard
Measure word ·

Examples

  • 蜥蜴
    Wǒ zài shā mò lǐ kàn dào yì zhī xī yì.
    I saw a lizard in the desert.
  • 蜥蜴
    Zhè zhī xī yì de yán sè hé shí tou hěn xiāng sì.
    This lizard's color is very similar to the stone.
  • 蜥蜴
    xī yì Shì biàn wēn dòng wù, xū yào shài tài yáng lái tiáo jié tǐ wēn.
    Lizards are ectothermic animals that need to bask in the sun to regulate body temperature.

Origin

Single-morpheme word
构词法gòucífǎ
联绵liánmiánBound pair

Two characters that only ever appear together, spelling one ancient two-syllable word.

The characters 蜥 and 蜴 carry no meaning on their own; together they name a lizard.

Sound-only characters

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
chóngsnake; insect
Sound part声符shēngfú
Same sound today

蜥 uses 虫 for snake or insect and 析 for the sound.

Open 蜥 →

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
chóngsnake; insect
Sound part声符shēngfú
Same sound today

蜴 uses 虫 (snake; insect) for the meaning and 易 for the sound.

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