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铁三角 (tiě sān jiǎ) — iron triangle (in politics/sociology); a stable triangular power alliance; Audio-Technica (brand of audio equipment); an inseparable trio of close friends or allies

Definition

Literally 'iron triangle': a tight, unbreakable three-way alliance or close trio. Can be a political/sociology term (power alliance) or simply describe three inseparable people.

noun
iron triangle (in politics/sociology)a stable triangular power allianceAudio-Technica (brand of audio equipment)an inseparable trio of close friends or allies

Examples

  • 、铁三角。
    Zhè ge guó jiā de zhèng fǔ, jūn duì hé shāng jiè xíng chéng le yí gè tiě sān jiǎ.
    The government, military, and business community in this country formed an iron triangle.
  • 铁三角，。
    Tā yòng tiě sān jiǎ de ěr jī tīng yīn yuè, yīn zhì hěn hǎo.
    He uses Audio-Technica headphones to listen to music; the sound quality is very good.
  • ，铁三角。
    Tā men sān gè shì zuì hǎo de péng you, yí gè chāi bú sàn de tiě sān jiǎ.
    The three of them are best friends, an inseparable trio.

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.

铁tiěiron
三角triangle
三sānthree角jiǎoangle
偏正Modifier + head

铁 (iron) and 三角 (three angles) combine to suggest a firm three-sided alliance.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 鐵; 铁 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
金金jīnmetal
Sound part声符shēngfú
𢧤
𢧤𢧤鐵tiě
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 鐵 pairs 金 (metal) with 𢧤 as a sound part; the simplified 铁 is a later shorthand.

Open 铁 →

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

三 is drawn as three parallel strokes, like 一 with one stroke and 二 with two.

Open 三 →

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

The form 角 is a picture of a horn.

Open 角 →
Appears in
Abstract Concepts

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