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一头 (yī tóu) — (quantifier phrase) used for certain domestic animals or large creatures: one animal, a head (e.g., 一头牛, 一头大象); (noun) one end (of a stick, rope, etc.); one side (of an issue); (adverb) headlong; directly; without stopping

Definition

As an adverb, 一头 means 'headlong' — bursting into action without stopping, more abrupt than 径直 ('straight, without detours'). As a quantifier 头, it counts large animals (一头牛), distinct from the 'side/end' sense (一面).

noun
(quantifier phrase) used for certain domestic animals or large creatures: one animal, a head (e.g., 一头牛, 一头大象)one end (of a stick, rope, etc.)one side (of an issue)
adverb
headlongdirectlywithout stopping

Examples

  • 一头。
    Zhè tóu niú shì nóng mín jiā de yī tóu.
    This cow is one head from the farmer's home.
  • 。
    Shéng zi de yī yī tóu xì zài shù shàng.
    One end of the rope is tied to the tree.
  • 一头。
    Tā yī tóu chōng jìn le fáng jiān.
    He rushed headlong into the room.

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.

一yīone
头tóuend

One end or one top gives a single side, and moving straight ahead without stopping.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

一 is drawn as one horizontal stroke, marking the number one.

Open 一 →

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 頭; 头 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
頁頁yèhead
Sound part声符shēngfú
豆
豆dòu頭tóu
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 頭 shows 頁, meaning head, beside 豆 as a sound component; the simplified 头 is a later shorthand.

Open 头 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Numbers & CountingMeasure Words

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