冷杉 (lěng shā) — fir (tree of the genus Abies)

Definition

noun
fir (tree of the genus Abies)
Measure word · 棵

Examples

  • 冷杉,。
    lěng shā Shì yì zhǒng cháng lǜ qiáo mù, shēng zhǎng zài gāo hǎi bá dì qū.
    Fir is an evergreen tree that grows in high-altitude areas.
  • 冷杉,。
    Zhè zhǒng mù cái lái zì lěng shā, cháng yòng yú zhì zuò jiā jù.
    This type of timber comes from fir and is often used to make furniture.
  • 冷杉,。
    Shān lǐ yǒu hěn duō lěng shā, yuǎn yuǎn kàn guò qù yí piàn cuì lǜ.
    There are many firs in the mountains, and from a distance they look like a patch of emerald green.

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.

杉shānconifer

冷 suggests cold or coldness, and 杉 names a conifer, giving the sense of fir tree.

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
冫Written in full as仌bīngice
Sound part声符shēngfú
令
令lìng冷lěng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

冷 uses 冫, the ice form, with 令 as a sound part, to mean cold as ice.

Open 冷 →

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
木木mùtree
Sound part声符shēngfú
彡
彡shān杉shā
Same sound today

杉 pairs 木 (tree) on the left with 彡 on the right, which gives the sound.

Open 杉 →

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