鲨鱼 (shā yú) — shark | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A shark — a cartilaginous predatory fish. Compared to 鳄鱼 (crocodile, a reptile that lives in rivers and swamps) and 鲸 (whale, a marine mammal), 鲨鱼 is a fish.

noun

shark

Measure word · 条

Examples

鲨鱼。
Wǒ men qián shuǐ shí yù dào le yì tóu shā yú.
We encountered a shark while diving.
鲨鱼。
shā yú Shì hǎi yáng shēng tài xì tǒng zhōng zhòng yào de dǐng jí bǔ shí zhě.
Sharks are important top predators in the ocean ecosystem.
鲨鱼。
Kē xué jiā zhèng zài yán jiū shā yú de qiān xǐ mó shì.
Scientists are studying the migration patterns of sharks.

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.

鲨 names the shark kind, and 鱼 marks it as a fish.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 鯊; 鲨 is its simplified writing.

沙魚鯊

Meaning part形符xíngfú

魚魚yúfish

Sound part声符shēngfú

沙

Same sound today

The traditional form 鯊 shows 魚 (fish) and 沙 (shā) for the sound; the simplified 鲨 is a later shorthand.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 魚; 鱼 is its simplified writing.

For 鱼, the traditional form 魚 is a picture of a fish.

Appears in

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