魔杖 (mó zhàng) — magic wand | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

magic wand

Measure word · 根

Examples

魔杖，。
Tā huī dòng mó zhàng, biàn chū le yí shù huā.
She waved her magic wand and conjured a bouquet of flowers.
魔杖。
Tóng huà lǐ de wū shī dōu yòng mó zhàng shī fǎ.
Wizards in fairy tales all use magic wands to cast spells.
魔杖。
Tā bǎ mó zhàng cáng zài cháng páo de kǒu dài lǐ.
He hid the magic wand in the pocket of his robe.

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.

魔 names magic and 杖 names a staff, so it means a magic wand.

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.

麻鬼魔

Meaning part形符xíngfú

鬼鬼guǐdemon

Sound part声符shēngfú

麻

麻má魔mó

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

魔 pairs 鬼, meaning demon, with 麻, which gives the sound.

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

木丈杖

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

丈

丈zhàng杖zhàng

Same sound today

杖 is built from 木, the wood part, plus 丈, which gives the sound.

Appears in

Mythology & Folklore

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