西西里岛 (Xī xī lǐ dǎo) — Sicily (Italian island) | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

Sicily (Italian island)

Examples

西西里岛。
Xī xī lǐ dǎo Shì dì zhōng hǎi zuì dà de dǎo yǔ.
Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.
西西里岛。
Wǒ men jì huà míng nián qù Xī xī lǐ dǎo lǚ yóu.
We plan to travel to Sicily next year.
西西里岛。
Xī xī lǐ dǎo Yǐ měi lì de fēng jǐng hé měi shí wén míng.
Sicily is famous for its beautiful scenery and food.

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.

西西里Sicily

西xī西xī里lǐ

西西里 spells Sicily and 岛 means island, so 西西里岛 is the island of Sicily.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

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 裡; 里 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 里 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (里, 里面) it is 裡; in others (公里) it is 里 or 裏.

衤里裡

Meaning part形符xíngfú

衤Written in full as衣yīclothes

Sound part声符shēngfú

里

里lǐ裡lǐ

Same sound today

The form 裡 pairs 衤 (clothes) with 里 as a sound component.

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 島; 岛 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

山山shānmountain

Sound part声符shēngfú

鳥

鳥niǎo島dǎo

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

The traditional form 島 uses 山, meaning mountain, and 鳥 for the sound. The simplified 岛 is a later shorthand.

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