香槟酒 (xiāng bīn jiǔ) — champagne

Definition

noun
champagne
Measure word ·

Examples

  • 香槟酒
    Qìng zhù xīn nián shí, dà jiā kāi le yì píng xiāng bīn jiǔ.
    Everyone opened a bottle of champagne to celebrate the New Year.
  • 香槟酒
    Zhè píng xiāng bīn jiǔ shì fǎ guó jìn kǒu de, kǒu gǎn fēi cháng hǎo.
    This bottle of champagne is imported from France and tastes excellent.
  • 香槟酒
    Hūn lǐ shàng, bīn kè men jǔ bēi gòng yǐn xiāng bīn jiǔ.
    At the wedding, the guests raised their glasses and drank champagne together.

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.

香槟champagne
音译Transliteration

The 香槟 name plus 酒 gives the idea of a sparkling wine.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

香's early form paired 黍 (glutinous millet) with 口 (mouth), perhaps showing millet drink being taken in or offered.

Open 香 →

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 檳; 槟 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
Sound part声符shēngfú
bīnbīn
Same sound today

The traditional form 檳 pairs 木, a tree, with 賓 to give the sound; the simplified 槟 is a later shorthand.

Open 槟 →

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

酒 pairs 酉, the original picture for this word, with 水 (water), added later to distinguish it.

Open 酒 →

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