螺纹 (luó wén) — screw thread (helical ridge on a screw, bolt, or pipe); fingerprint whorl (spiral pattern in a fingerprint)

Definition

A compound of 螺 (spiral) + 纹 (pattern). Two main senses: the helical ridge on a screw/bolt (technical), and the spiral whorl pattern in a fingerprint (forensic/biometric).

noun
screw thread (helical ridge on a screw, bolt, or pipe)fingerprint whorl (spiral pattern in a fingerprint)
Measure word · 道

Examples

  • 螺纹。
    Zhè ge luó sī de luó wén fēi cháng biāo zhǔn.
    The threads on this screw are very standard.
  • 螺纹。
    Tā de zhǐ wén shǔ yú luó wén xíng.
    His fingerprint is of the whorl type.
  • 螺纹。
    Wǒ men xū yào jiǎn chá zhè ge líng jiàn shàng de luó wén shì fǒu wán zhěng.
    We need to check whether the threads on this part are intact.

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.

螺luóspiral
纹wénpattern

螺 gives the spiral idea and 纹 means pattern, together spiral pattern or screw thread.

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chóng
Sound part声符shēngfú
累
累lèi螺luó
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

螺 combines 虫, a part associated with creatures, with 累, which gives the sound.

Open 螺 →

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 紋; 纹 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìthread
Sound part声符shēngfú
文
文wén紋
Same sound today

The traditional form 紋 pairs 糸 (thread) with 文 as the sound part, giving the sense of a line of thread; this note is about 紋, not 纹.

Open 纹 →

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