TongTong
Sign in

波尔卡 (bō ěr kǎ) — polka (dance)

Definition

noun
polka (dance)
Measure word · 支

Examples

  • 波尔卡。
    Tā xǐ huan tiào bō ěr kǎ.
    She likes to dance the polka.
  • ，波尔卡。
    Zài wǎn huì shàng, dà jiā tiào le yí duàn bō ěr kǎ.
    At the party, everyone danced a polka.
  • 波尔卡。
    Zhè shǒu bō ěr kǎ yīn yuè hěn hǎo tīng.
    This polka music sounds great.

Origin

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

The left side 氵 is water, and the right side 皮 gives the sound.

Open 波 →

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

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 爾; 尔 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 爾, simplified as 尔, originally drew cloth on a loom with crossing threads. It was borrowed for its sound to write “you,” so the picture is unrelated to that meaning.

Open 尔 →

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

卡 is made from 上 (up) and 下 (down), with their horizontal lines fused, showing something squeezed between above and below.

Open 卡 →
Appears in
Dance & Performance

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.