同形 (tóng xíng) — (linguistics) homograph, homoform, homomorph (same written form with different meanings)

Definition

A linguistics term for characters or words that share the same written form but have different meanings. Often contrasted with 同音词 (same pronunciation, different form).

noun
(linguistics) homographhomoformhomomorph (same written form with different meanings)

Examples

  • ，同形。
    Xué xí yǔ yán xué shí, nǐ xū yào qū fēn tóng xíng hé tóng yīn cí.
    When studying linguistics, you need to distinguish homographs from homophones.
  • 同形，。
    Zhè liǎng gè zì shì tóng xíng, dàn dú yīn wán quán bù tóng.
    These two characters are homographs, but their pronunciations are completely different.
  • 同形。
    Zì diǎn lǐ liè chū le suǒ yǒu cháng jiàn de tóng xíng cí.
    The dictionary lists all common homograph words.

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.

同tóngsame
形xíngform

同 means same and 形 means form, so having the same written form.

Characters in this word

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

同 originally drew a pipe. It is the old form of 筒.

Open 同 →

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
彡彡shān
Sound part声符shēngfú
井
井jǐng形xíng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

形 is made from 彡 and 井, with 井 providing the sound.

Open 形 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.