金鱼缸 (jīn yú gāng) — goldfish bowl | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

goldfish bowl

Measure word · 个

金鱼缸。
Zhè ge jīn yú gāng lǐ yǎng le sān tiáo jīn yú.
There are three goldfish in this bowl.
金鱼缸。
Xiǎo péng yǒu měi tiān dōu yào gěi jīn yú gāng huàn shuǐ.
The child has to change the water in the goldfish bowl every day.
金鱼缸，。
Tā bǎ jīn yú gāng fàng zài chuāng tái shàng, yáng guāng zhèng hǎo zhào dào.
He put the goldfish bowl on the windowsill, where the sunlight just hits it.

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.

金鱼goldfish

偏正Modifier + head

金鱼 means gold fish, and 缸 is a tank or bowl, so the word names a bowl for goldfish.

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.

金 was drawn with marks for two pieces of metal, along with a part that gave its sound; it first meant copper, then metals and gold.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 魚; 鱼 is its simplified writing.

For 鱼, the traditional form 魚 is a picture of a fish.

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.