水靴 (shuǐ xuē) — water boots, rain boots

Definition

noun
water bootsrain boots
Measure word · 双

Examples

  • 水靴。
    Xià yǔ tiān wǒ chuān shuǐ xuē chū mén.
    I wear water boots when going out on rainy days.
  • 水靴，。
    Zhè shuāng shuǐ xuē hěn nuǎn huo, shì hé dōng tiān chuān.
    These water boots are very warm, suitable for winter wear.
  • 水靴。
    Tā zài tián lǐ gōng zuò shí zǒng chuān zhuó shuǐ xuē.
    He always wears water boots when working in the fields.

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.

水shuǐwater
靴xuēboots

水 and 靴 describe boots worn for water or rain.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

水 is a simple drawing of water flowing.

Open 水 →

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
革革géleather
Sound part声符shēngfú
化
化huà靴xuē
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

靴 combines 革 (leather) with 化, which hints at its sound.

Open 靴 →

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