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高个 (gāo gě) — tall person

Definition

noun
tall person
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 高个。
    Nà ge gāo gě shì wǒ dì di.
    That tall person is my younger brother.
  • 高个。
    Tā xǐ huan hé gāo gě yì qǐ pāi zhào.
    She likes to take photos with tall people.
  • 高个。
    Duì wu qián miàn zhàn le yí gè gāo gě.
    A tall person is standing at the front of the line.

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.

高gāotall
个gèindividual

高 ('tall') specifies 个 ('individual'), yielding 'tall person'.

Characters in this word

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

高 was drawn as a tall building.

Open 高 →

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 個; 个 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
亻Written in full as人rénperson
Sound part声符shēngfú
固
固gù個ge
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

For 个, the form 個 pairs 亻 (person) with 固 as a sound part.

Open 个 →
Appears in
People (General)

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