化学药品 (huà xué yào pǐn) — chemicals, chemical reagents, pharmaceutical chemicals

Definition

Chemical substances used in industry or pharmaceuticals — compounds produced or purified by chemical means, as opposed to natural or crude materials.

noun
chemicalschemical reagentspharmaceutical chemicals
Measure word · 种

Examples

  • 化学药品。
    Shí yàn shì xū yào gè zhǒng huà xué yào pǐn.
    The laboratory needs various chemicals.
  • 化学药品，。
    Zhè xiē huà xué yào pǐn duì rén tǐ yǒu hài, yào xiǎo xīn shǐ yòng.
    These chemicals are harmful to the human body and must be used with care.
  • 。
    Zhè jiā gōng chǎng shēng chǎn gōng yè huà xué yào pǐn.
    This factory produces industrial chemicals.

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.

化学chemistry
化huàchange学xuéstudy
偏正Modifier + head
药品preparation
药yàomedicine品pǐnarticle
偏正Modifier + head

化学 refers to the science of substances, and 药品 means preparations; together they name chemical preparations.

Characters in this word

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

化 shows two person figures, one upright and one upside down, to give the idea of reversal or change.

Open 化 →

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 學; 学 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 學 may have used 爻 and 六 for sound, with hands and a child added later; the simplified 学 is a shorthand.

Open 学 →

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 藥; 药 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
艹Written in full as艸cǎograss
Sound part声符shēngfú
樂
樂lè藥yào
Same sound today

In the traditional form 藥, 艹 shows grass and 樂 gives the sound; this story is about 藥, not about the simplified 药.

Open 药 →

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

品 repeats the same simple shape three times, representing various objects.

Open 品 →
Appears in
Medicine & TreatmentPhysics & Chemistry

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