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俗称 (sú chēng) — (verb) to be commonly known as; to be commonly referred to as; (noun) common name; popular term

Definition

俗称 means the everyday name people actually use for something, as opposed to its formal or technical name. Unlike 称作 (a neutral ‘be called’), 俗称 implies the label is colloquial or folk-level.

verb
to be commonly known asto be commonly referred to as
noun
common namepopular term

Examples

  • 俗称“”。
    Zhè zhǒng zhí wù sú chēng "méi gui".
    This plant is commonly called ‘rose’.
  • 俗称“”。
    Nà dào cài wǒ men sú chēng "hóng shāo ròu".
    That dish is commonly known as ‘braised pork belly’.
  • 俗称“”。
    Zhè zhǒng niǎo de sú chēng shì "xǐ què".
    The common name for this bird is ‘magpie’.

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.

俗súcommon
称chēngcall

俗 means common, and 称 means to call or name, so 俗称 is what people commonly call something.

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
亻Written in full as人rénperson
Sound part声符shēngfú
谷
谷gǔ俗sú
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

俗 is built from 亻, a person, and 谷, which gives the sound; it refers to customs of people.

Open 俗 →

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 稱; 称 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
禾禾hérice
Sound part声符shēngfú
爯
爯chēng稱chēng
Same sound today

The traditional form 稱 pairs 禾 (rice) with 爯, a part giving the sound; it is explained as measuring rice. The simplified 称 is a later shorthand.

Open 称 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Language

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