九点五 (jiǔ diǎn wǔ) — nine thirty (9:05)

Definition

numeral
nine thirty (9:05)

Examples

  • 九点五，。
    Xiàn zài jiǔ diǎn wǔ le, wǒ men zǒu ba.
    It's 9:05 now; let's go.
  • 九点五。
    Tā měi tiān jiǔ diǎn wǔ qǐ chuáng.
    She gets up at 9:05 every day.
  • 九点五。
    Huǒ chē jiǔ diǎn wǔ dào zhàn.
    The train arrives at 9:05.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

The shape comes from a stylized hand bent at the wrist, with the lower-right hook showing the bend. Later, it was taken to show a tightened fist bumping up to ten, giving the number nine.

Open 九 →

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 點; 点 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
黑黑hēiblack
Sound part声符shēngfú
占
占zhàn點diǎn(r)
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 點 pairs 黑 (black) with 占 for its sound; the simplified 点 is a later abbreviation.

Open 点 →

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

An older form had a crossed mark between a top bar and a bottom bar. The modern 五 keeps those bars, while the original idea is uncertain.

Open 五 →

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