悠长 (yōu cháng) — long and drawn-out; prolonged | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

verb

long and drawn-outprolonged

Examples

悠长。
Zhōng shēng yōu cháng ér shēn chén.
The bell sound is long and deep.
悠长，。
Suì yuè yōu cháng, rén shēng duǎn zàn.
The years are long, but life is short.
悠长，。
Dí shēng yōu cháng, yǐn rén shēn sī.
The flute sound is long and drawn-out, leading people to deep thought.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéSide by side

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

长chángdrawn out

Long and drawn out combine to describe something prolonged.

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.

攸心悠

Meaning part形符xíngfú

心心xīnheart; mind

Sound part声符shēngfú

攸

攸yōu悠yōu

Same sound today

悠 pairs 攸, which gives the sound, with 心, meaning heart or mind.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 長; 长 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 長 pictures an old man with long hair. The simplified 长 is a later shorthand, so its strokes do not show that original picture.

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