吗啡 (mǎ fēi) — morphine (a powerful pain-relieving drug)

Definition

noun

morphine (a powerful pain-relieving drug)

Examples

吗啡。
Yī shēng gěi tā zhù shè le yì zhī mǎ fēi yòng yú zhǐ tòng.
The doctor gave him an injection of morphine for pain relief.
吗啡，。
Cháng qī shǐ yòng mǎ fēi huì dǎo zhì chéng yǐn, wēi hài jí dà.
Long-term use of morphine can lead to addiction and cause great harm.
吗啡。
mǎ fēi Shì cóng yā piàn zhōng tí qǔ de qiáng xiào zhèn tòng yào.
Morphine is a powerful analgesic extracted from opium.

Origin

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 嗎; 吗 is its simplified writing.

口馬嗎

Meaning part形符xíngfú

口口kǒumouth

Sound part声符shēngfú

馬

馬mǎ嗎ma

Same sound today

The traditional form 嗎 pairs 口 (mouth) with 馬, which gives the sound. The simplified 吗 is a later shorthand, so its right side is not the historical 馬.

Open 吗 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

口非啡

Meaning part形符xíngfú

口口kǒumouth

Sound part声符shēngfú

非

非fēi啡

Same sound today

啡 combines 口 (mouth) with 非, which supplies the sound.

Appears in

Medicine & Treatment