首批 (shǒu pī) — first batch | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

quantifier

first batch

Examples

首批。
shǒu pī Chéng kè yǐ jīng dēng jī le.
The first batch of passengers has already boarded.
首批。
Wǒ men shōu dào le shǒu pī dìng dān.
We received the first batch of orders.
首批。
shǒu pī Shí yàn qǔ dé le chéng gōng.
The first batch of experiments was successful.

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.

首 means first and 批 means batch, so the word names the first batch.

Characters in this word

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

The shape comes from an old drawing of an animal's head, showing a long mouth and horns; the version with hair became 首.

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

手手shǒuhand

Sound part声符shēngfú

比

比bǐ批pī

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

批 puts 手 (hand) beside 比, which gives the sound.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Order & Arrangement

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