鹅毛 (é máo) — goose feather; (in idioms) a modest gift that symbolizes sincere feelings

Definition

Literally 'goose feather' — the literal sense appears in compounds like 鹅毛大雪 ('goose-feather snow', i.e. heavy snowfall). The set phrase 千里送鹅毛 ('sending a goose feather a thousand li') uses it to mean a small, humble gift carrying deep feeling.

noun
goose feather(in idioms) a modest gift that symbolizes sincere feelings
Measure word · 根

Examples

  • 鹅毛，。
    Wài miàn xià zhe é máo dà xuě, lù shang yí gè rén dōu méi yǒu.
    Outside, huge goose-feather snowflakes are falling, and there's no one on the road.
  • 鹅毛，。
    Qiān lǐ sòng é máo, lǐ qīng qíng yì zhòng.
    Sending a goose feather from a thousand li away — the gift is light but the feeling is deep.
  • 鹅毛，。
    Tā sòng le wǒ yì gēn é máo, shuō shì jiā xiāng de tè chǎn.
    He gave me a goose feather, saying it was a specialty from his hometown.

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.

鹅égoose
毛máofeather

The 毛 of a 鹅, i.e. goose feathers.

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 鵝; 鹅 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
鳥鳥niǎo
Sound part声符shēngfú
我
我wǒ鵝é
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In the traditional form 鵝, 鳥 shows it is a bird and 我 gives the sound; the simplified 鹅 is a later shorthand, not the historical shape.

Open 鹅 →

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 →

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