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战车 (zhàn chē) — tank (military tracked armored vehicle); armored vehicle (general); chariot (ancient war vehicle)

Definition

Literally 'war vehicle' — covers ancient chariots, modern tanks, and armored vehicles in general. The exact referent depends on context: 古代战车 = chariot, 现代战车 = tank.

noun
tank (military tracked armored vehicle)armored vehicle (general)chariot (ancient war vehicle)
Measure word · 辆

Examples

  • 战车。
    Zhàn chǎng shàng chū xiàn le duō liàng zhàn chē.
    Many tanks appeared on the battlefield.
  • ，战车。
    Gǔ dài zhàn zhēng zhōng, zhàn chē shì zhòng yào de wǔ qì.
    In ancient warfare, chariots were important weapons.
  • 战车。
    Zhè liàng zhàn chē pèi bèi le xiān jìn de wǔ qì xì tǒng.
    This armored vehicle is equipped with advanced weapon systems.

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.

战zhànwar
车chēvehicle

战 means war and 车 means vehicle, so it is a vehicle for battle.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
戈戈gē
Sound part声符shēngfú
占
占zhàn战zhàn
Same sound today

战 pairs 占, which gives its sound, with 戈, a weapon.

Open 战 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 車; 车 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 車 was drawn as a carriage seen from above, with wheels on both sides and a shaft at the front; the simplified 车 is a later shorthand.

Open 车 →
Appears in
Military & DefenseVehicles

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