上海滩 (shàng hǎi tān) — the Bund (Shanghai's famous waterfront promenade)

Definition

上海滩 (Shànghǎi Tān) is 'the Bund' — Shanghai's iconic waterfront promenade along the Huangpu River, famous for its colonial-era skyline and night view.

noun
the Bund (Shanghai's famous waterfront promenade)

Examples

  • ，上海滩。
    Wǒ dì yī cì qù shàng hǎi de shí hou, yí dìng yào qù shàng hǎi tān kàn kàn.
    When I go to Shanghai for the first time, I must go see the Bund.
  • 上海滩，。
    shàng hǎi tān De yè jǐng fēi cháng měi, hěn duō yóu kè zài nà lǐ pāi zhào.
    The night view of the Bund is very beautiful; many tourists take photos there.
  • 上海滩。
    Zhè bù diàn shì jù ràng shàng hǎi tān zhè ge míng zì biàn de jiā yù hù xiǎo.
    This TV drama made the name 'The Bund' known in every household.

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.

上海Shanghai
上shàngupper海hǎisea
偏正Modifier + head
滩tānshore

上海 names the city, and 滩 names the shore; together they refer to Shanghai's famous waterfront.

Characters in this word

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

上 is drawn as a short horizontal line placed above a longer arc, marking a position above that arc.

Open 上 →

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
氵Written in full as水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
每
每měi海hǎi
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

海 pairs 氵 (water) with 每, which gives the sound. The 氵 side shows it is about water.

Open 海 →

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 灘; 滩 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
氵Written in full as水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
難
難nán灘tān
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In the traditional form 灘, 氵 (water) marks the meaning and 難 gives the sound; the simplified 滩 is a shorthand.

Open 滩 →

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