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双眼 (shuāng yǎn) — both eyes

Definition

noun
both eyes

Examples

  • 双眼。
    Tā shuāng yǎn jiǒng jiǒng yǒu shén.
    His eyes are bright and spirited.
  • 双眼。
    Tā shuāng yǎn hán zhe lèi shuǐ.
    Her eyes were filled with tears.
  • 双眼。
    Lǎo rén shuāng yǎn shī míng le.
    The old man lost sight in both eyes.

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.

双shuāngpair/both
眼yǎneye

双 points to a pair of 眼, giving the sense of both eyes.

Characters in this word

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

双 is made of two 又 parts side by side. Repeating 又 gives the sense of a pair.

Open 双 →

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
目目mùeye
Sound part声符shēngfú
艮
艮gèn眼yǎn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

眼 combines 目, which is an eye, with 艮, which gives the character's sound.

Open 眼 →
Appears in
Body Parts

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