处 (chù) — (noun) place, location, spot; (noun) department, office, section (used in compounds: 办公处, 售票处); (noun) point, aspect (used in compounds: 好处, 难处, 长处)
Definition
Read as chù: a formal 'place' or 'point' (好处 = advantage, 长处 = strong point). Compared to 室, it means the whole office/section, not a single room. The verb form is read chǔ.
noun
placelocationspotdepartmentofficesection (used in compounds: 办公处, 售票处)pointaspect (used in compounds: 好处, 难处, 长处)
Measure word · 个
Examples
- 。Zhè shì gè hǎo qù chù.This is a good place.
- ？Shòu piào chù zài nǎ lǐ?Where is the ticket office?
- 。Xué xí wài yǔ yǒu hěn duō hǎo chù.Learning a foreign language has many benefits.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost 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 處; 处 is its simplified writing.
Sound part声符shēngfú
虍
虍hū處chǔ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.
The traditional form 處 pairs 虍, giving the sound, with 夂 and 几, a table, as meaning parts. The simplified 处 is a shorthand and its parts are not the historical components.
Appears in
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