半成品 (bàn chéng pǐn) — semi-finished product, semifinished product

Definition

noun

semi-finished productsemifinished product

半成品。
Zhè jiā gōng chǎng zhuān mén shēng chǎn bàn chéng pǐn.
This factory specializes in producing semi-finished products.
半成品。
Zhè xiē bàn chéng pǐn hái xū yào jìn yí bù jiā gōng.
These semi-finished products still need further processing.
半成品。
Wǒ men gōng sī cóng guó wài jìn kǒu bàn chéng pǐn.
Our company imports semi-finished products from abroad.

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.

成品finished product

偏正Modifier + head

半 means not complete, and 成品 is a finished product; together they name something only partly finished.

Characters in this word

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

The shape pairs 八 (to divide) with 牛 (cow), showing a cow cut into two halves.

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

Sound part声符shēngfú

丁

丁dīng成chéng

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

成 puts 戊, a weapon, beside 丁, which gives the sound. The weapon part relates to protection, as in the old sense of city walls.

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.