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墨水 (mò shuǐ) — ink; (figurative) learning, knowledge

Definition

墨水 is the liquid ink you put in a pen. Compare 墨 (the solid ink stick ground on a stone for calligraphy) and 笔墨 (writing as an art or words on paper).

noun
ink(figurative) learningknowledge
Measure word · 瓶

Examples

  • 墨水，。
    Zhè píng mò shuǐ shì hēi sè de, hěn hǎo yòng.
    This bottle of ink is black and works well.
  • 墨水，。
    Wǒ de gāng bǐ méi mò shuǐ le, xū yào mǎi yì píng xīn de.
    My fountain pen is out of ink; I need to buy a new bottle.
  • ，墨水，。
    Tā suī rán xué lì bù gāo, dàn dù zi lǐ hěn yǒu mò shuǐ, shuō huà hěn yǒu dào lǐ.
    Although he doesn't have a high degree, he's very learned and speaks sensibly.

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.

墨mòink
水shuǐwater

墨 ink and 水 water combine in 墨水 to mean ink.

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tǔsoil
Sound part声符shēngfú
黑
黑hēi墨mò
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

墨 is built from 土 (soil) and 黑, with 黑 giving the sound.

Open 墨 →

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

水 is a simple drawing of water flowing.

Open 水 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Reading & Writing

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