月台 (yuè tái) — railway platform | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

railway platform

Measure word · 个

月台。
Wǒ zài yuè tái děng huǒ chē.
I'm waiting for the train at the platform.
月台。
Qǐng dào sān hào yuè tái shàng chē.
Please go to platform 3 to board the train.
月台。
yuè tái Shàng yǒu hěn duō rén.
There are many people on the platform.

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.

台táiplatform

The 月 “moon” and 台 “platform” originally named a terrace for viewing the moon; the word now means a railway platform.

Characters in this word

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

月 was drawn as a crescent moon, with the curved outline showing the moon’s shape.

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 臺; 台 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 台 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (窗台, 电视台) it is 臺; in others (台灯, 台球) (台风) it is 檯 or 台 or 颱.

The traditional form 臺 is the 喬 + 室 form; earlier versions combined a sound part with 室, and an old reading saw it as a watch tower.

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