新干线 (Xīn gàn xiàn) — Shinkansen (Japanese high-speed railway system)

Definition

Refers specifically to Japan's Shinkansen high-speed rail network and its trains. The proper name is usually kept in Chinese when discussing Japanese rail.

noun
Shinkansen (Japanese high-speed railway system)

Examples

  • 新干线。
    Rì běn de Xīn gàn xiàn sù dù fēi cháng kuài.
    The Shinkansen in Japan is very fast.
  • 新干线。
    Wǒ cóng dōng jīng zuò Xīn gàn xiàn dào dà bǎn.
    I took the Shinkansen from Tokyo to Osaka.
  • 新干线，。
    Xīn gàn xiàn Hěn zhǔn shí, cóng lái bù wǎn diǎn.
    The Shinkansen is very punctual and never late.

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.

新xīnnew
干线trunk line
干gāntrunk线xiànline
偏正Modifier + head

新 (new) and 干线 (trunk line) together name a new main railway line.

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.

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
斤斤jīn
Sound part声符shēngfú
辛
辛xīn新xīn
Same sound today

The shape originally paired 斤, for chopping wood, with 辛 for sound. It was borrowed for its sound to write 新, so the chopping-wood parts are unrelated to 'new'.

Open 新 →

The simplified 干 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (饼干, 干杯) it is 乾; in others (干, 干活儿) (干扰) it is 幹 or 干.

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 乾; 干 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
乙乙yǐ
Sound part声符shēngfú
倝
倝gàn乾gān
Same sound today
Open 干 →

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 線; 线 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糹Written in full as糸mì
Sound part声符shēngfú
泉
泉quán線xiàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 線 uses 糹 (silk/thread) to show the meaning and 泉 to suggest the sound; the simplified 线 is a later shorthand.

Open 线 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.