衣袖 (yī xiù) — sleeves | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

sleeves

Measure word · 只

Examples

衣袖。
Zhè jiàn yī fu de yī xiù tài cháng le.
The sleeves of this garment are too long.
衣袖，。
Tā bǎ yī xiù juǎn qǐ lái, kāi shǐ xǐ wǎn.
She rolled up her sleeves and started washing dishes.
衣袖。
Dōng tiān de yī xiù yào hòu yì xiē cái bǎo nuǎn.
Winter sleeves need to be thicker to keep warm.

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.

衣yīclothing

衣 specifies the garment and 袖 gives the sleeve, together meaning the sleeves of clothing.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 衣 comes from an outline of the chest and upper clothing.

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

衣衣yīclothing

Sound part声符shēngfú

由

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

袖 pairs 衣 (clothing) with 由, which provides the sound.

Appears in

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