毫秒 (háo miǎo) — millisecond

Definition

classifier
millisecond

Examples

  • 毫秒。
    Zhè ge chéng xù yùn xíng zhī xū jǐ háo miǎo.
    This program only takes a few milliseconds to run.
  • 毫秒。
    Yì háo miǎo děng yú qiān fēn zhī yī miǎo.
    One millisecond equals one thousandth of a second.
  • 毫秒。
    Fǎn yìng shí jiān zhǐ yǒu sān háo miǎo.
    The reaction time is only three milliseconds.

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.

毫háothousandth
秒miǎosecond

“毫” (thousandth) and “秒” (second) combine to mean one thousandth of a second.

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.

The written form 毫 is built from 高 and 毛.

Open 毫 →

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
禾禾hécereal; grain
Sound part声符shēngfú
少
少shǎo秒miǎo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The form 秒 pairs 禾, a cereal or grain plant, with 少 giving the sound.

Open 秒 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.