打桩机 (dǎ zhuāng jī) — pile driver

Definition

noun
pile driver
Measure word · 台

Examples

  • 打桩机。
    Gōng dì shàng yǒu yì tái xīn dǎ zhuāng jī.
    There is a new pile driver at the construction site.
  • 打桩机。
    dǎ zhuāng jī De shēng yīn fēi cháng dà.
    The pile driver is very loud.
  • 打桩机。
    Tā men yòng dǎ zhuāng jī lái dǎ dì jī.
    They use the pile driver to drive piles.

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.

打桩drive piles
打dǎdrive桩zhuāngpile
动宾Verb + object
机jīmachine

打桩 means driving piles, and 机 is a machine; together they name a pile-driving machine.

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
扌Written in full as手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
丁
丁dīng打dǎ
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

打 uses 扌, a hand, to show an action done with the hand, and 丁 to give the sound.

Open 打 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 桩 →

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
木木mùtree; wood
Sound part声符shēngfú
几
几jǐ机jī
Same sound today

The left part is 木 (tree; wood), and the right part 几 gives the sound.

Open 机 →

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