手掌 (shǒu zhǎng) — palm | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

手掌 is the surface of the inner hand — distinct from 手指 (the fingers) and 拇指 (the thumb). 巴掌 is a synonym but colloquial, and also means 'a slap' (打一巴掌).

noun

palm

Measure word · 只

Examples

。
Tā bǎ shǒu zhǎng shēn le chū lái.
He extended his palm.
手掌。
Wǒ de shǒu zhǎng chū hàn le.
My palm is sweating.
手掌。
Tā qīng qīng pāi le pāi hái zi de shǒu zhǎng.
She gently patted the child's palm.

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.

The 手 'hand' tells us which 掌 'palm' is meant: the palm of the hand.

Characters in this word

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

手 draws a five-fingered human hand: the top line is a bent middle finger, and the horizontal lines show the other four fingers.

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

尚

尚shàng掌zhǎng

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

It combines 手, meaning hand, with 尚, which gives it a sound close to shàng.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Body Parts

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