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偷渡者 (tōu dù zhě) — stowaway; illegal immigrant (who entered by smuggling)

Definition

noun
stowawayillegal immigrant (who entered by smuggling)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 偷渡者。
    Zhè sōu chuán shàng fā xiàn le liǎng míng tōu dù zhě.
    Two stowaways were found on this ship.
  • 偷渡者。
    Jǐng fāng dài bǔ le yì pī tōu dù zhě.
    The police arrested a group of illegal immigrants.
  • 偷渡者。
    Zuò tōu dù zhě shì fēi cháng wēi xiǎn de shì qing.
    Being a stowaway is a very dangerous thing.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

偷渡cross secretly
偷tōusecretly渡dùcross
偏正Modifier + head
者zhěone who

偷渡 cross secretly and 者 one who combine to mean someone who crosses secretly.

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rén
Sound part声符shēngfú
俞
俞yú偷tōu
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left part 亻, a standing person, points to the idea of someone doing the act, while the right part 俞 gives the character its sound.

Open 偷 →

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
度
度dù渡dù
Same sound today

渡 has 氵, water, beside 度, which gives the sound.

Open 渡 →

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

The form 者 originally drew a sugarcane with full stems, small points around it, and an open smiling mouth at the bottom.

Open 者 →
Appears in
Crime & Police

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