南瓜 (nán guā) — pumpkin | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

pumpkin

Measure word · 个

Examples

南瓜。
Zhè ge nán guā hěn tián.
This pumpkin is very sweet.
南瓜。
Wǒ mā ma xǐ huan yòng nán guā zuò tāng.
My mom likes to make soup with pumpkin.
南瓜。
Wǒ men zài dì lǐ zhǒng le yì xiē nán guā.
We planted some pumpkins in the field.

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.

南 points to a southern or foreign origin, and 瓜 is a gourd or melon; together they name the pumpkin.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

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

The shape of 瓜 is drawn from a melon hanging from its vines, which matches its meaning.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Vegetables

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