鲷 (diāo) — porgy, bream
Definition
noun
porgybream
Measure word · 条
Easily confused
- 绸chóulook-alike(bound morpheme) silk fabric; silk
- 叼diāosound-aliketo hold in one's mouth (as a cigarette, bone, or object)
- 稠chóulook-alike(of liquid) thick, dense in consistency
- 雕diāosound-aliketo carve, to engrave
- 调diàolook-alike(verb) to transfer, to move (troops, cadres, personnel)
- 貂diāosound-alikemarten (a small carnivorous mammal of the genus Martes, valued for its fur)
Examples
- 鲷，。Zhè tiáo diāo hěn xīn xiān, shì hé qīng zhēng.This porgy is very fresh, suitable for steaming.
- 鲷。Tā diào dào le yì tiáo dà diāo.He caught a large bream.
- ，鲷。Rì shì liào lǐ zhōng, diāo cì shēn hěn shòu huān yíng.In Japanese cuisine, bream sashimi is very popular.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost 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 鯛; 鲷 is its simplified writing.
Meaning part形符xíngfú
魚魚yúfish
Sound part声符shēngfú
周
周zhōu鯛diāo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.
The traditional form 鯛 pairs 魚, a fish, with 周 as a sound part; the simplified 鲷 is a shorthand, so its right side is not the old sound part.
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