江水 (jiāng shuǐ) — river water

Definition

noun
river water

Examples

  • 江水,。
    Zhè tiáo hé de jiāng shuǐ qīng chè jiàn dǐ, néng kàn dào shuǐ dǐ de shí tou.
    The river water of this river is so clear you can see the stones at the bottom.
  • ,江水,。
    Dōng tiān shí, jiāng shuǐ bīng lěng cì gǔ, méi rén gǎn xià shuǐ yóu yǒng.
    In winter, the river water is ice-cold and piercing; no one dares to go swimming.
  • 江水。
    Hé liǎng àn de jū mín shì shì dài dài yǐn yòng zhè tiáo hé de jiāng shuǐ.
    Residents on both sides of the river have drunk the river water for generations.

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.

江 names a river, and 水 names water, so the phrase means river water.

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
氵Written in full as水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
工
工gōng江jiāng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

江 puts 氵, the water side, beside 工, which gives a sound; the water part points to its river meaning.

Open 江 →

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 →

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