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四分之一 (sì fēn zhī yī) — one quarter; one fourth

Definition

A fractional numeral meaning 'one quarter / one fourth' (¼). Use this specific form for fractions whose denominator is 4; say 二分之一 for 'one half', 三分之一 for 'one third', etc.

numeral
one quarterone fourth

Examples

  • 四分之一。
    Wǒ chī le zhè ge dàn gāo de sì fēn zhī yī.
    I ate one quarter of this cake.
  • 四分之一。
    Tā yòng le sì fēn zhī yī xiǎo shí wán chéng gōng zuò.
    He used a quarter of an hour to finish the work.
  • 四分之一。
    Zhè ge chéng shì sì fēn zhī yī de rén kǒu dōu shì xué shēng.
    One quarter of this city's population are students.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

The form 四 was drawn as a nose breathing out. It later came to be used for the word four.

Open 四 →

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

分 pairs 八 (to separate) with 刀 (knife), showing something cut apart with a knife.

Open 分 →

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

The shape pairs 止, a foot, with 一, a beginning place, and means to go.

Open 之 →

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

一 is drawn as one horizontal stroke, marking the number one.

Open 一 →
Appears in
Numbers & Counting

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