汗臭 (hàn chòu) — body odor | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

body odor

Examples

汗臭。
Tā yùn dòng hòu shēn shàng yǒu hàn chòu.
He has body odor after exercise.
，汗臭。
Xià tiān zuò dì tiě, hàn chòu de wèi dào tè bié míng xiǎn.
In summer on the subway, the smell of body odor is especially noticeable.
汗臭。
Měi tiān xǐ zǎo kě yǐ qù diào hàn chòu.
Showering every day can get rid of body odor.

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.

汗 as sweat and 臭 as smell together name the odor given off by sweat.

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

Sound part声符shēngfú

干

干gān汗hàn

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

汗 has 水, the water form, beside 干; 水 relates to liquid sweat, while 干 gives the sound.

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

犬自臭

犬犬quǎndog
自自zìnose

臭 combines 自 (nose) and 犬 (dog), referring to a dog's strong sense of smell; it originally meant 'to smell'.

Appears in

Hygiene & Grooming

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