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西洋 (xī yáng) — (historical place word) the West; the Western world (especially Europe and America)

Definition

Historical/cultural term for 'the West' — Europe and America, used as a modifier (西洋文化, 西洋画). For a neutral modern label, use 西方.

noun
(historical place word) the Westthe Western world (especially Europe and America)

Examples

  • 西洋。
    Tā duì xī yáng lì shǐ hé wén huà fēi cháng gǎn xìng qù.
    He is very interested in Western history and culture.
  • 西洋。
    Zhè fú huà shì xī yáng yóu huà fēng gé.
    This painting is in the Western oil painting style.
  • 西洋。
    xī yáng De zhé xué sī xiǎng duì jìn xiàn dài zhōng guó yǐng xiǎng hěn dà.
    Western philosophical thought had a great influence on modern China.

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.

西xīwest
洋yángocean

西 (west) + 洋 (ocean) originally the western seas, now the West.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 西 →

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
氵Written in full as水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
羊
羊yáng洋yáng
Same sound today

洋 pairs 氵, the water part, with 羊 to give its sound.

Open 洋 →
Appears in
International & Diplomacy

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