复读 (fù dú) — (v) to repeat (a recording) for practice; to use a repeater device; (v) to retake a year of school; to repeat a grade

Definition

复读 (fùdú) means 'to repeat' in two specific senses: playing back recorded audio (as with a 复读机 repeater device, common in language study), or repeating a school year after failing an exam like 高考.

verb
(v) to repeat (a recording) for practiceto use a repeater device(v) to retake a year of schoolto repeat a grade

Examples

  • 复读。
    Tā yòng fù dú jī fù dú yīng yǔ jù zi.
    He uses a repeater to repeat English sentences.
  • ，复读。
    Gāo kǎo méi kǎo hǎo, wǒ jué dìng fù dú yì nián.
    I didn't do well on the college entrance exam, so I decided to retake the year.
  • 复读。
    Zhè ge fù dú bān bāng zhù hěn duō xué shēng zhǔn bèi kǎo shì.
    This repeat-year class helps many students prepare for exams.

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.

复fùagain
读dúread

复 adds the idea of again to 读, read, giving the sense of repeated reading or replaying.

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 復; 复 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 复 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (复习, 恢复) it is 復; in others (复印, 复杂) (答复, 反复) it is 複 or 覆.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
彳彳chìwalk
Sound part声符shēngfú
复
复fù復fù
Same sound today

The traditional form 復 combines 彳, a walking part, with 复, a sound part, to show walking back and forth.

Open 复 →

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 讀; 读 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánto say
Sound part声符shēngfú
𧶠
𧶠𧶠讀dú
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 讀 is made of 言 ('to say') and 𧶠 (giving the sound); this description is about 讀, not 读.

Open 读 →

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