(méi) — plum (the fruit or tree); surname Mei

Definition

noun
plum (the fruit or tree)surname Mei
Measure word ·

Examples

  • Chūn tiān dào le, méi huā kāi le.
    Spring has arrived, and the plum blossoms have bloomed.
  • méi Xiān sheng shì wǒ men de zhōng wén lǎo shī.
    Mr. Mei is our Chinese teacher.
  • Zhè zhǒng méi zi hěn tián, kě yǐ zuò chéng mì jiàn.
    This kind of plum is very sweet and can be made into preserved fruit.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

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
tree
Sound part声符shēngfú
měiméi
Same sound today

梅 is built from 木 (tree) and 每, which gives the sound; it is used for the plum tree.

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