姜黄 (jiāng huáng) — turmeric

Definition

noun
turmeric

Examples

  • 姜黄。
    Wǒ mǎi le yì bāo jiāng huáng yòng lái zuò gā lí.
    I bought a packet of turmeric to make curry.
  • 姜黄。
    jiāng huáng Yǒu xiāo yán de zuò yòng.
    Turmeric has anti-inflammatory effects.
  • 姜黄，。
    Zhè zhǒng shí wù jiā le jiāng huáng, suǒ yǐ yán sè huáng huáng de.
    This food has turmeric added, so it's yellowish in color.

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.

姜jiāngginger
黄huángyellow

姜 evokes ginger, and 黄 evokes yellow, naming the yellow ginger-like plant.

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
女女nǚfemale
Sound part声符shēngfú
羊
羊yáng姜
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

姜 uses 女 to show a female and 羊 for the sound.

Open 姜 →

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 黃; 黄 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
田田tiánfield
Sound part声符shēngfú
炗
炗guāng黃huáng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 黃 pairs 田 (field) with 炗 (light), which gives the sound; the simplified 黄 is a shorthand and its parts are not historical components.

Open 黄 →

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