杂 (zá) — mixed, miscellaneous, varied
Definition
Used to describe things that are jumbled or mix many different types together, often with a sense of disorder. As an adjective it modifies nouns directly (杂事, 杂物); 各种/各个 just enumerate kinds, while 多样 emphasizes positive variety.
adjective
mixedmiscellaneousvaried
Easily confused
- 亲qīnlook-alikeadjective: close, intimate, one's own (flesh and blood)
- 砸zásound-aliketo smash, to pound, to strike hard (physically breaking or hitting something)
- 杀shālook-aliketo kill; to murder
- 余yúlook-alike(verb) to have leftover; to remain
- 条tiáolook-alike(classifier) used for long, thin objects (rivers, roads, trousers, fish, etc.)
Examples
- 杂，。Zhè xiē wén jiàn hěn zá, xū yào zhěng lǐ yí xià.These files are very mixed up and need to be organized.
- ，。zá Shì tài duō le, wǒ máng bú guò lái.There are too many miscellaneous tasks; I can't keep up.
- 杂，。Zhè běn shū de nèi róng hěn zá, shén me dōu jiǎng.The content of this book is very varied; it covers everything.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost 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 雜; 杂 is its simplified writing.
The traditional form 雜 pairs 衣 (clothes) with 集 as a sound part, originally referring to mixed colours, perhaps in dyed clothes; the simplified 杂 is a later shorthand.
Appears in
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