车底 (chē dǐ) — bottom of a vehicle

Definition

noun
bottom of a vehicle

Examples

  • 车底。
    Jiǎn chá yí xià chē dǐ yǒu méi yǒu lòu yóu.
    Check the bottom of the vehicle for oil leaks.
  • 车底。
    chē dǐ De fáng hù bǎn bèi shí tou guā huā le.
    The protective plate on the bottom of the vehicle was scratched by a rock.
  • 车底。
    Zhè liàng chē de chē dǐ zuò le fáng xiù chǔ lǐ.
    The bottom of this vehicle has been treated against rust.

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.

车chēvehicle
底dǐbottom

The term combines 车, vehicle, with 底, bottom.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 車; 车 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 車 was drawn as a carriage seen from above, with wheels on both sides and a shaft at the front; the simplified 车 is a later shorthand.

Open 车 →

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
广广guǎngbuilding
Sound part声符shēngfú
氐
氐dī底dǐ
Same sound today

底 pairs 广 (building) with 氐, pointing to the bottom or foundation of a building. Some read 氐 as a bowing figure or tree root, adding a sense of 'down'.

Open 底 →

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