排水沟 (pái shuǐ gōu) — drainage ditch | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

drainage ditch

Measure word · 条

Examples

排水沟，。
Nóng tián lǐ yǒu jǐ tiáo pái shuǐ gōu, yòng lái pái zǒu duō yú de shuǐ.
There are several drainage ditches in the fields to drain excess water.
排水沟，。
Chéng shì lǐ de pái shuǐ gōu xū yào dìng qī qīng lǐ, bù rán huì dǔ sè.
The drainage ditches in the city need regular cleaning, otherwise they will clog.
排水沟，。
Zhè tiáo pái shuǐ gōu bèi luò yè dǔ zhù le, kuài qù zhǎo rén lái xiū.
This drainage ditch is blocked by fallen leaves; go find someone to fix it quickly.

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.

排水drain

排páidrain水shuǐwater

动宾Verb + object

排 and 水 give draining water, and 沟 is a ditch, so the word is a drainage ditch.

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.

扌非排

Meaning part形符xíngfú

扌Written in full as手shǒuhand

Sound part声符shēngfú

非

非fēi排pái

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

排 uses 扌 (hand) to show arranging something with the hand, and 非 for the sound; this gives the sense of placing things in a line.

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

水 is a simple drawing of water flowing.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 溝; 沟 is its simplified writing.

氵冓溝

Meaning part形符xíngfú

氵Written in full as水shuǐwater

Sound part声符shēngfú

冓

冓gòu溝gōu

Same sound today

The traditional form 溝 pairs 氵 (water) with 冓 for the sound; the simplified 沟 is a later shorthand, so its right side is not the historical part.

Appears in

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