填料 (tián liào) — packing material (for sealing, gaskets); stuffing (for food, pillows)

Definition

A technical/culinary noun for the material that fills a space — e.g. sealant packing in machinery, or the filling inside dumplings and pillows. Always a physical substance; never abstract.

noun
packing material (for sealing, gaskets)stuffing (for food, pillows)

Examples

  • 填料。
    Zhè zhǒng tián liào cháng yòng yú jī xiè mì fēng.
    This type of packing is commonly used in mechanical seals.
  • ，填料。
    Zuò jiǎo zi de shí hou, wǒ men bǎ ròu xiàn hé shū cài zuò wéi tián liào.
    When making dumplings, we use meat filling and vegetables as stuffing.
  • 填料。
    Zhěn tou lǐ yòng de shì róu ruǎn de tián liào.
    The pillow uses soft stuffing.

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.

填tiánfill
料liàomaterial

填 and 料 combine to mean material for filling or stuffing.

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
土土tǔ
Sound part声符shēngfú
真
真zhēn填
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

填 combines 土 (soil) with 真, which gives the sound.

Open 填 →

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

料 combines 米 (rice) with 斗 (a dipper), showing rice being measured or gauged.

Open 料 →

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