投票箱 (tóu piào xiāng) — ballot box

Definition

noun
ballot box
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 投票箱。
    Qǐng bǎ xuǎn piào fàng jìn tóu piào xiāng lǐ.
    Please put your ballot into the ballot box.
  • 投票箱。
    Nà ge tóu piào xiāng yǐ jīng mǎn le.
    That ballot box is already full.
  • 投票箱。
    Gōng zuò rén yuán dǎ kāi le tóu piào xiāng.
    The staff opened the ballot box.

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.

投票cast a ballot
投tóucast票piàoballot
动宾Verb + object
箱xiāngbox

投票 means casting a ballot, and 箱 is a box: a box for ballots.

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
殳
殳shū投tóu
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left part 扌 shows a hand, and the right part 殳 gives the sound of the character.

Open 投 →

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

  • 火火huǒfire
  • 𢍱𢍱𢍱to rise high

票 combines 火 (fire) and 𢍱 (to rise high), originally representing sparks rising up.

Open 票 →

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
𥫗Written in full as竹zhúbamboo
Sound part声符shēngfú
相
相xiāng箱xiāng
Same sound today

箱 combines 竹, showing bamboo, with 相 as a sound part, to write a bamboo box or case.

Open 箱 →

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