恒河 (Héng hé) — the Ganges (river in India)

Definition

noun

the Ganges (river in India)

恒河。
Héng hé Shì yìn dù zuì cháng de hé liú zhī yī.
The Ganges is one of the longest rivers in India.
恒河。
Hěn duō yìn dù jiào tú zài Héng hé lǐ mù yù qí fú.
Many Hindus bathe in the Ganges to pray for blessings.
恒河。
Měi nián dōu yǒu dà liàng yóu kè qù cān guān Héng hé.
Every year a large number of tourists go to visit the Ganges.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 恆; 恒 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 恆 pairs 心, a heart, with 亙, a partial moon, which provides the sound; 恒 is a later simplified shape.

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

Sound part声符shēngfú

何

Same sound today

河 pairs 水 (water) with 何, which gives the sound. The 水 part marks it as a word for a river.