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出租汽车 (chū zū qì chē) — taxi, cab

Definition

noun
taxicab
Measure word · 辆

Examples

  • 出租汽车。
    Wǒ dǎ le yí liàng chū zū qì chē.
    I hailed a taxi.
  • 出租汽车。
    Zuò chū zū qì chē qù jī chǎng bǐ jiào fāng biàn.
    Taking a taxi to the airport is more convenient.
  • 出租汽车。
    Tā zài lù biān děng chū zū qì chē.
    He is waiting for a taxi by the roadside.

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.

出租rent out
出chūput out租zūrent
动宾Verb + object
汽车automobile
汽qìsteam车chēvehicle
偏正Modifier + head

A 汽车 that can be 出租 is a car hired for rides.

Characters in this word

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

出 combines 止 (foot) and 凵 (cave) to show a foot stepping out of a cave.

Open 出 →

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
禾禾hé
Sound part声符shēngfú
且
且qiě租zū
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

租 uses 禾 (grain) because land rent was paid in grain, and 且 shows the pronunciation.

Open 租 →

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
气
气qì汽
Same sound today

The 氵 part is water, and 气 is used for the sound and also means air, so 汽 shows water in an air-like form.

Open 汽 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 車; 车 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 車 was drawn as a carriage seen from above, with wheels on both sides and a shaft at the front; the simplified 车 is a later shorthand.

Open 车 →
Appears in
Vehicles

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