幼女 (yòu nǚ) — young girl (especially under 14 years old; legal term)

Definition

A legal/formal term for a young girl under 14 — not the everyday word for 'little girl'. In everyday speech 小女孩 or 女孩 is used; 幼女 appears in legal, news, and child-protection contexts.

noun
young girl (especially under 14 years old; legal term)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 幼女。
    Fǎ lǜ duì yòu nǚ de bǎo hù fēi cháng yán gé.
    The law provides very strict protection for young girls.
  • 幼女。
    Wǒ men yīng gāi guān zhù yòu nǚ de jiào yù wèn tí.
    We should pay attention to the education of young girls.
  • 幼女。
    Zhè qǐ yòu nǚ shī zōng àn yǐn qǐ le shè huì guān zhù.
    This missing young girl case has drawn public attention.

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.

幼yòuyoung
女nǚgirl

幼 (young) and 女 (girl) combine to name a young girl.

Characters in this word

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

幼 is built from 幺, shown as tiny, and 力, shown as strength. 幺 may also contribute the sound.

Open 幼 →

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

女 shows a woman with folded arms, kneeling or standing. In the modern form the figure faces right, and the small enclosed part is what is left of one arm.

Open 女 →

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