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黑斑 (hēi bān) — freckle; dark spot (on skin); black speck (on a surface)

Definition

noun
freckledark spot (on skin)black speck (on a surface)
Measure word · 块

Examples

  • 黑斑。
    Tā liǎn shàng yǒu yí piàn xiǎo hēi bān.
    She has a patch of small freckles on her face.
  • 黑斑。
    Lǎo rén shǒu shàng chū xiàn le xǔ duō hēi bān.
    Many dark spots appeared on the old person's hands.
  • 黑斑。
    Zhè ge píng guǒ shàng yǒu jǐ gè hēi bān.
    There are a few black specks on this apple.

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.

黑hēiblack
斑bānspot

黑 names black and 斑 names a spot, so the word is a dark spot.

Characters in this word

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

The shape of 黑 seems to come from drawing a head marked with dots, usually read as facial tattoos.

Open 黑 →

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

Meaning part形符xíngfú
文文wénpattern
Sound part声符shēngfú
班
班bān斑bān
Same sound today

斑 uses 文 to show a pattern and 班 to give its sound.

Open 斑 →
Appears in
Body Parts

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