中亚地区 (zhōng yà dì qū) — Central Asia region

Definition

noun
Central Asia region

Examples

  • 中亚地区，。
    zhōng yà dì qū Bāo kuò wǔ gè guó jiā, shì gǔ sī chóu zhī lù de zhòng yào tōng dào.
    The Central Asia region includes five countries and was an important passage on the ancient Silk Road.
  • ，中亚地区。
    Jìn nián lái, zhōng yà dì qū de jīng jì fā zhǎn xī yǐn le quán shì jiè de zhù yì.
    In recent years, the economic development of Central Asia has attracted worldwide attention.
  • 中亚地区，。
    zhōng yà dì qū De qì hòu gān zào, dà bù fen dì qū shì shā mò hé cǎo yuán.
    The climate of Central Asia is dry, with most areas being desert and grassland.

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.

中亚Central Asia
中zhōngcentral亚yàAsia
偏正Modifier + head
地区area
地dìarea区qūregion
联合Side by side

中 and 亚 mark central Asia, while 地 and 区 both suggest an area, so the name points to the Central Asia region.

Characters in this word

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

The original picture showed a flagpole with a drum in the middle, set up in the center of a field.

Open 中 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 亞; 亚 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 亞 likely shows an overhead view of a construction, perhaps a 亞-shaped tomb. Its later simplified form 亚 is just a shorthand.

Open 亚 →

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
土土tǔearth
Sound part声符shēngfú
也
也yě地dì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

地 is built from 土 (earth) and 也, which gives its sound.

Open 地 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 區; 区 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 區 is made from 匸 and 品; the simplified 区 is a shorthand.

Open 区 →

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