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属于 (shǔ yú) — to belong to; to be part of; to be classified as

Definition

Used to state what someone or something belongs to or falls under (a person, group, or category). 分类 is the action of sorting things; 归属 emphasizes affiliation with an organization or jurisdiction.

verb
to belong toto be part ofto be classified as

Examples

  • 属于。
    Zhè ge fáng zi shǔ yú wǒ de fù mǔ.
    This house belongs to my parents.
  • 属于。
    Zhè xiē wén jiàn shǔ yú gōng sī.
    These documents belong to the company.
  • 属于。
    Zhè ge róng yù shǔ yú zhěng gè tuán duì.
    This honor belongs to the whole team.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

属shǔbelong
于yúto

属 means belong, and 于 points to what something belongs to.

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 屬; 属 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
㞑Written in full as尾wěitail
Sound part声符shēngfú
蜀
蜀shǔ屬shǔ
Same sound today

The traditional form 屬 pairs 㞑 (tail) with 蜀 as a sound part; the simplified 属 is a shorthand.

Open 属 →

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

  • 一一yīflat stream of air
  • 丂丂kǎoto exhale

The old shape of 于 may have pictured an ancient wind instrument. Another explanation reads 一 as a flat stream of air and 丂 as an exhaling mark.

Open 于 →
Appears in
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