鼻孔 (bí kǒng) — nostril

Definition

noun
nostril
Measure word · 只

Examples

  • 鼻孔。
    Tā de bí kǒng lǐ sāi le yì tuán zhǐ jīn.
    He stuffed a tissue up his nostril.
  • ,鼻孔。
    Gǎn mào de shí hou, liǎng gè bí kǒng dōu dǔ zhù le.
    When you have a cold, both nostrils get blocked.
  • 鼻孔,。
    Yóu yǒng shí shuǐ jìn le bí kǒng, hěn nán shòu.
    Water got into my nostrils while swimming — it was really uncomfortable.

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.

The 鼻 'nose' and 孔 'hole' combine to name the opening in the nose.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
自自zìnose
Sound part声符shēngfú
畀
畀bì鼻bí
Same sound today

鼻 pairs 自, meaning nose, with 畀, which gives the sound.

Open 鼻 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

  • 丿丿piěopening
  • 子子zǐchild

孔 pairs 丿 (an opening) with 子 (a child), showing an opening in a newborn's skull.

Open 孔 →
Appears in

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