搓澡 (cuō zǎo) — to scrub one's body (with a damp towel in a bathhouse, to remove dead skin)

Definition

A verb for scrubbing one's body (often the back) with a damp towel in a bathhouse, usually done by a 搓澡师傅 rather than yourself. The towel is 毛巾 or 搓澡巾, not soap.

verb
to scrub one's body (with a damp towel in a bathhouse, to remove dead skin)

Examples

  • 。
    Wǒ měi gè yuè qù zǎo táng cuō yí cì zǎo.
    I go to the bathhouse once a month for a body scrub.
  • ，。
    Shī fu gěi wǒ cuō le cuō bèi, tè bié shū fu.
    The master scrubbed my back for me, it felt really comfortable.
  • 搓澡？
    Nǐ yǐ qián shì guò cuō zǎo ma?
    Have you ever tried a body scrub before?

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

搓cuōrub
澡zǎobath

搓 (rub) + 澡 (bath) means to rub the body while bathing.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 搓 →

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
水水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
喿
喿zào澡zǎo
Same sound today

澡 uses 水 (water) to show the idea of washing and 喿 to give the sound.

Open 澡 →

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