小溪 (xiǎo xī) — brook, small stream | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

brooksmall stream

Measure word · 条

Examples

小溪。
Shān jiān yǒu yì tiáo xiǎo xī.
There is a brook in the mountains.
小溪。
xiǎo xī Lǐ de shuǐ qīng chè jiàn dǐ.
The water in the brook is crystal clear.
小溪。
Hái zi men zài xiǎo xī biān wán shuǎ.
The children are playing by the brook.

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.

溪xīstream

小 means small and 溪 means stream, giving a small stream.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

八八bāto divide; to separate
丨丨gǔnsmall object

The shape of 小 comes from three small dots, later elongated into its strokes; the apparent parts 八 and 丨 are a later way of seeing it.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

氵奚溪

Meaning part形符xíngfú

氵Written in full as水shuǐ

Sound part声符shēngfú

奚

奚xī溪xī

Same sound today

The 氵 on the left shows the character is about water, and 奚 on the right gives its sound.

Appears in

Geography & Landforms

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