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声音 (shēng yīn) — sound; voice

Definition

The everyday word for 'sound' or 'voice' — covers both what you hear and a person's speaking voice. Use 声 by itself mainly for short bursts of sound or reputation; 语音/发音 refer to pronunciation.

noun
soundvoice
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 声音，。
    Wài miàn yǒu yí gè qí guài de shēng yīn, wǒ men qù kàn kàn.
    There's a strange sound outside, let's go check.
  • 声音。
    Tā de shēng yīn hěn hǎo tīng.
    Her voice is very pleasant.
  • 声音，。
    Tā shuō huà de shēng yīn tài xiǎo le, wǒ tīng bú jiàn.
    His speaking voice is too quiet, I can't hear.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

声shēngsound
音yīnsound

Both 声 and 音 mean sound, so together they refer to a voice or sound.

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 聲; 声 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
耳耳ěrear
Sound part声符shēngfú
殸
殸qìng聲shēng
Same sound today

The traditional form 聲 pairs 耳 (ear) with 殸 as a sound part; the simplified 声 is a shorthand and does not show those original parts.

Open 声 →

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

音 adds a short stroke that seals the mouth-like part, showing a covered or muffled sound rather than speech.

Open 音 →
Appears in
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