曲曲 (qū qū) — curly; winding; twisting

Definition

Bound form meaning 'curly / winding / twisting' — used almost only in the set phrases 曲曲弯弯 and 曲曲折折, where it reduplicates to describe a repeatedly twisting path or curls.

bound form

curlywindingtwisting

Easily confused

Examples

曲曲。
Tā yǒu yì tóu qū qū de juǎn fà.
She has a head of curly hair.
曲曲。
Zhè tiáo xiǎo hé qū qū dì liú guò cūn zhuāng.
This small river winds through the village.
曲曲。
Shān jiān yǒu yì tiáo qū qū de xiǎo lù.
There is a winding path in the mountains.

Origin

Reduplicated word

构词法gòucífǎ

重叠chóngdiéReduplication

A syllable said twice — for affection, for softness, or simply because that is how the word is said.

曲qǔcurly

The doubled 曲 suggests curly, winding hair or paths.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

曲 is drawn as a bent object, matching the meaning 'bend'.

Open 曲 →