日头 (rì tóu) — sun (colloquial, especially in northern dialects); daytime, sunshine

Definition

Colloquial, often northern-Chinese word for 'the sun' (the big hot thing in the sky) and the sunshine it gives. More everyday than 太阳, which is the neutral standard term in most contexts.

noun
sun (colloquial, especially in northern dialects)daytimesunshine
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 日头，。
    Jīn tiān de rì tóu zhēn dà, bié zài wài miàn dài tài jiǔ.
    The sun is really strong today; don't stay outside too long.
  • 日头，。
    rì tóu Chū lái le, wǒ men chū qù zǒu zǒu ba.
    The sun is out; let's go out for a walk.
  • 日头，。
    Děng rì tóu xià shān le, tiān jiù liáng kuai le.
    Once the sun sets, it will get cooler.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

日rìsun
头tóu

日 points to the sun, and 头 gives 日头 a familiar colloquial feel.

Characters in this word

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

日 originally drew the sun. A mark was added inside to tell it apart from similar square shapes.

Open 日 →

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 頭; 头 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
頁頁yèhead
Sound part声符shēngfú
豆
豆dòu頭tóu
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 頭 shows 頁, meaning head, beside 豆 as a sound component; the simplified 头 is a later shorthand.

Open 头 →

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