鞋油 (xié yóu) — shoe polish | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

shoe polish

Measure word · 盒

Examples

鞋油。
Wǒ qù shāng diàn mǎi le yì hé xié yóu.
I went to the store and bought a box of shoe polish.
鞋油，。
Yòng xié yóu cā xié zhī qián, yào xiān bǎ xié cā gān jìng.
Before polishing shoes with shoe polish, you should first wipe the shoes clean.
鞋油，。
Zhè píng xié yóu zhì liàng hěn hǎo, cā wán xié tè bié liàng.
This bottle of shoe polish is of good quality; the shoes come out especially shiny after polishing.

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.

“鞋” and “油” combine to mean oil applied to shoes, hence shoe polish.

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.

革圭鞋

Meaning part形符xíngfú

革革géleather

Sound part声符shēngfú

圭

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

鞋 puts 革 (leather) beside 圭 to show leather shoes; 圭 gives the sound and originally drew a pair of ritual axes, not earth.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

氵由油

Meaning part形符xíngfú

氵Written in full as水shuǐwater

Sound part声符shēngfú

由

由yóu油yóu

Same sound today

油 is built from 氵, a water part, and 由, which supplies the sound.

Appears in

Footwear & Accessories

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