君士坦丁堡 (Jūn shì tǎn dīng bǎo) — Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire

Definition

noun
Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire

Examples

  • 君士坦丁堡，。
    Jūn shì tǎn dīng bǎo Shì bài zhàn tíng dì guó de shǒu dū, lì shǐ fēi cháng yōu jiǔ.
    Constantinople was the capital of the Byzantine Empire with a very long history.
  • 君士坦丁堡，。
    Tā men jì huà míng nián qù Jūn shì tǎn dīng bǎo lǚ xíng, gǎn shòu nà lǐ de wén huà.
    They plan to travel to Constantinople next year to experience the culture there.
  • 君士坦丁堡，。
    Jūn shì tǎn dīng bǎo De chéng qiáng céng jīng fēi cháng jiān gù, bǎo hù le chéng shì hěn duō nián.
    The walls of Constantinople were once very strong, protecting the city for many years.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
口口kǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
尹
尹yǐn君jūn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

君 combines 尹 and 口. Early forms were often interchangeable with 尹, and 口 may show commands or simply be decorative.

Open 君 →

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

The shape 士 comes from a simple drawing of a war axe. The character later came to mean a soldier, officer, or intellectual.

Open 士 →

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
土土tǔearth
Sound part声符shēngfú
旦
旦dàn坦tǎn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

坦 is made from 土 (earth) plus 旦, which provides the sound. The earth part shows the sense is about ground.

Open 坦 →

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

丁 may picture a nail head, a person's head, a square city wall, or a square star pattern.

Open 丁 →

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
土土tǔ
Sound part声符shēngfú
保
保bǎo堡bǔ
Same sound today

堡 pairs 土 (earth) with 保 (bǎo): 保 gives the sound, and 土 is the meaning part.

Open 堡 →

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