卫兵 (wèi bīng) — guard, sentry; bodyguard | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

guardsentrybodyguard

Measure word · 个

Examples

卫兵，。
Mén kǒu zhàn zhe yí gè wèi bīng, bú ràng rèn hé rén jìn qù.
A guard stood at the door, not letting anyone in.
卫兵。
Zhè xiē wèi bīng měi tiān èr shí sì xiǎo shí lún liú zhí bān.
These guards take shifts 24 hours a day.
卫兵，。
Nà wèi jiāng jūn de wèi bīng fēi cháng jǐng tì, shí kè bǎo hù tā de ān quán.
The general's bodyguards were very vigilant, protecting his safety at all times.

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.

兵bīngsoldier

卫 (guard) + 兵 (soldier) = a soldier who guards.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 衛; 卫 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

韋

韋wéi衛wèi

Same sound today

The traditional form 衛 is built from 行 as the sense part and 韋 as the sound part; the simplified 卫 is a shorthand.

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

斤斤jīna short axe
廾廾gǒng2 hands

兵 combines 斤, a short axe, with 廾, two hands, showing a pair of hands holding a weapon.

Appears in

Military & Defense

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