马桶 (mǎ tǒng) — toilet (bowl); flush toilet

Definition

马桶 names the fixture itself — the bowl you sit on. For the room, say 厕所 or 卫生间; 马桶 is the object, not the place.

noun

toilet (bowl)flush toilet

Measure word · 个

马桶。
Wǒ xū yào mǎi yí gè xīn mǎ tǒng.
I need to buy a new toilet.
马桶，。
Zhè ge mǎ tǒng huài le, xū yào xiū yí xià.
This toilet is broken and needs to be fixed.
马桶。
Qǐng bǎ mǎ tǒng xǐ gān jìng.
Please clean the toilet.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 馬; 马 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 馬 shows a horse with its head facing left, a flowing mane, and two legs standing vertically.

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

木甬桶

Meaning part形符xíngfú

木木mùwood

Sound part声符shēngfú

甬

甬yǒng桶tǒng

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

The left part 木 shows wood, and the right part 甬 gives the sound.

Appears in