弓形 (gōng xíng) — (geometry) segment of a circle; bow shape, arc,… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

(geometry) segment of a circlebow shapearccurve

Examples

弓形？
Zhè ge gōng xíng de miàn jī zěn me jì suàn?
How do you calculate the area of this segment of a circle?
弓形。
Zhè zuò qiáo de gōng xíng shè jì fēi cháng yōu měi.
The bow-shaped design of this bridge is very elegant.
弓形。
Tā de méi mao huà chéng le zì rán de gōng xíng.
She drew her eyebrows into a natural arc.

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.

弓 is a bow and 形 is a shape; together they mean a bow-shaped arc or segment.

Characters in this word

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

The shape of 弓 is a picture of a bow.

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

彡彡shān

Sound part声符shēngfú

井

井jǐng形xíng

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

形 is made from 彡 and 井, with 井 providing the sound.

Appears in

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