氢弹 (qīng dàn) — hydrogen bomb | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

hydrogen bomb

Measure word · 颗

Easily confused

氢弹。
qīng dàn Shì yì zhǒng wēi lì jù dà de wǔ qì.
The hydrogen bomb is a weapon of immense power.
氢弹。
Gè guó dōu zài nǔ lì fáng zhǐ qīng dàn kuò sàn.
All countries are working to prevent the spread of hydrogen bombs.
氢弹。
Kē xué jiā men yán jiū le qīng dàn de bào zhà yuán lǐ.
Scientists studied the explosion mechanism of the hydrogen bomb.

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.

氢 (hydrogen) and 弹 (bomb) name a bomb that uses hydrogen.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 氫; 氢 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

气气qìair; gas

Sound part声符shēngfú

輕

輕qīng氫qīng

Same sound today

The traditional form 氫 combines 气 (air; gas) with 輕, which gives the pronunciation qīng; the simplified 氢 is a later shorthand.

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 彈; 弹 is its simplified writing.

弓單彈

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

單

單dān彈tán

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 彈 pairs 弓 (bow) with the sound part 單; the simplified 弹 is a shorthand.