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鸡毛 (jī máo) — chicken feather; trivial thing, something insignificant

Definition

Literally 'chicken feathers,' used in the set phrases 鸡毛蒜皮 and 鸡毛小事 for trivial, petty matters. The literal meaning ('chicken feather') is rare on its own.

noun
chicken feathertrivial thingsomething insignificant
Measure word · 根

Examples

  • 鸡毛，。
    Dì shàng yǒu jǐ gēn jī máo, kuài qù dǎ sǎo yí xià.
    There are a few chicken feathers on the floor — go clean them up quickly.
  • 鸡毛，。
    Zhè xiē dōu shì jī máo xiǎo shì, bié fàng zài xīn shàng.
    These are all trivial matters — don't take them to heart.
  • 。
    Tā zǒng wèi yì xiē jī máo suàn pí de shì shēng qì.
    He always gets angry over petty little things.

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.

鸡jīchicken
毛máofeather

鸡 names chicken and 毛 names feather, so the word is a chicken feather.

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 雞; 鸡 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
隹隹zhuīshort-tailed bird
Sound part声符shēngfú
奚
奚xī雞jī
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 雞 pairs 奚, which gives the sound, with 隹, a short-tailed bird. The simplified 鸡 is a later shorthand, and its right side is not the historical 奚.

Open 鸡 →

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

毛 is drawn as a feather or hair, with its strokes tracing the shape of the feather or hair.

Open 毛 →
Appears in
Birds

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