沿岸 (yán àn) — coastal area; riparian area

Definition

沿岸 is the general 'area along a shore,' used for both coasts and riverbanks. 沿海 is restricted to the sea; 海岸 is the shoreline itself; 海滨 emphasizes the seaside.

noun

coastal areariparian area

Examples

沿岸。
Zhè tiáo hé de yán àn yǒu hěn duō cūn zhuāng.
There are many villages along this river.
沿岸。
yán àn De jū mín yǐ bǔ yú wéi shēng.
The residents of the coastal area make a living by fishing.
沿岸。
Zhèng fǔ jì huà zài yán àn jiàn shè xīn de lǚ yóu shè shī.
The government plans to build new tourism facilities along the coast.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

沿yánfollow along

岸ànbank

沿 means to follow along and 岸 is a bank or shore, so 沿岸 names the area beside the 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

㕣

㕣㕣沿yán

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

沿 pairs 氵 (water) with 㕣, which shows how it was pronounced; it originally meant the edge of a river, which led to the sense of moving along something.

Open 沿 →

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

屵屵àncliff

Sound part声符shēngfú

干

干gān岸àn

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

岸 shows 屵, a cliff, next to 干, which gives a clue to the sound; together they point to the edge of land.

Open 岸 →

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Geography & Landforms