查询台 (chá xún tái) — information desk; inquiry counter

Definition

noun
information deskinquiry counter
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 查询台。
    Wǒ qù chá xún tái wèn lù.
    I went to the information desk to ask for directions.
  • 查询台。
    chá xún tái De gōng zuò rén yuán hěn rè qíng.
    The staff at the information desk are very welcoming.
  • 查询台。
    Qǐng dǎ chá xún tái de diàn huà chá xún háng bān xìn xī.
    Please call the information desk to check flight information.

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.

查询inquire
查chácheck询xúnask
联合Side by side
台táidesk

查询 means to inquire, and 台 is the desk where inquiries are made.

Characters in this word

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
木木mùwood
Sound part声符shēngfú
且
且qiě查chá
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

查 pairs 木 (wood) with 且, which shows the sound. It originally meant a hawthorn tree or a wooden raft.

Open 查 →

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 詢; 询 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yán
Sound part声符shēngfú
旬
旬xún詢xún
Same sound today

The traditional form 詢 pairs 言 (speech) with 旬, which gives its sound; the simplified 询 is a shorthand.

Open 询 →

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.

Open 台 →

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