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小肚子 (xiǎo dù zi) — lower abdomen (colloquial)

Definition

Casual spoken word for the lower abdomen (the belly area below the navel). More everyday than the formal medical term 下腹部, and commonly used when talking about stomach aches or cramps.

noun
lower abdomen (colloquial)

Examples

  • 小肚子。
    Tā zuì jìn jué de xiǎo dù zi bù shū fu.
    He's been feeling discomfort in his lower abdomen lately.
  • 小肚子。
    Yùn dòng hòu wǒ de xiǎo dù zi huì téng.
    My lower abdomen hurts after exercise.
  • 小肚子。
    Yī shēng jiǎn chá le tā de xiǎo dù zi.
    The doctor examined her lower abdomen.

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.

小xiǎosmall
肚子belly
肚dùbelly子zǐsmall thing
偏正Modifier + head

小 means small and 肚子 means belly; together they refer to the lower abdomen.

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.

Open 小 →

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
⺼Written in full as肉ròu
Sound part声符shēngfú
土
土tǔ肚dù
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left side ⺼ is 肉 (flesh), marking body parts like belly; the right side 土 gives the pronunciation.

Open 肚 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

子 is drawn as a baby with a large head, arms stretched out, and legs wrapped in a blanket.

Open 子 →
Appears in
Body Parts

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