木管乐器 (mù guǎn yuè qì) — woodwind instrument

Definition

A category of musical instruments that produce sound by air passing through a wooden (or sometimes metal) tube — includes flute, clarinet, oboe, and bassoon. It pairs with 铜管乐器 (brass) and 弦乐器 (string) as the main orchestral families.

noun
woodwind instrument
Measure word · 件

Examples

  • 木管乐器。
    Tā xué xí mù guǎn yuè qì yǐ jīng shí nián le.
    He has studied woodwind instruments for ten years.
  • 木管乐器。
    mù guǎn yuè qì Zài yuè duì zhōng hěn zhòng yào.
    Woodwind instruments are very important in an orchestra.
  • 木管乐器。
    Zhè jiàn mù guǎn yuè qì de yīn sè fēi cháng yōu měi.
    The tone of this woodwind instrument is very beautiful.

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.

木管wooden pipe
木mùwood管guǎnpipe
偏正Modifier + head
乐器musical instrument
乐lèmusic器qìinstrument
偏正Modifier + head

木 means wood, 管 means pipe, and 乐器 means musical instrument.

Characters in this word

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

木 is drawn as a tree, with branches above and roots below.

Open 木 →

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
竹竹zhúbamboo
Sound part声符shēngfú
官
官guān管guǎn
Same sound today

管 has 竹 (bamboo) on top to show it relates to bamboo, and 官 gives its sound.

Open 管 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 樂; 乐 is its simplified writing.

In the traditional form 樂, 絲 (string) with 木 (wood) shows strings on a piece of wood, a musical instrument; the simplified 乐 is a later shorthand.

Open 乐 →

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

The origin of 器 is uncertain; one traditional account reads the whole shape as a scene of guarding over four vessels.

Open 器 →

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