泥墙 (ní qiáng) — mud wall | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

mud wall

Measure word · 面

泥墙。
Zhè zuò lǎo fáng zi de ní qiáng yǐ jīng chū xiàn liè fèng le.
The mud wall of this old house has developed cracks.
泥墙。
Yòng ní qiáng jiàn zào de fáng zi xià tiān hěn liáng kuai.
Houses built with mud walls are very cool in summer.
泥墙。
Cūn lǐ de ní qiáng zài yǔ lǐ hěn róng yì dǎo tā.
The mud walls in the village easily collapse in the rain.

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.

Mud and wall combine to describe a wall made of mud in 泥墙.

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.

氵尼泥

Meaning part形符xíngfú

氵Written in full as水shuǐwater

Sound part声符shēngfú

尼

Same sound today

The left side is 氵, the water part; the right side is 尼, which gives the sound.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 牆; 墙 is its simplified writing.

爿嗇牆

Meaning part形符xíngfú

嗇嗇sèwheat in a granary

Sound part声符shēngfú

爿

爿pán牆qiáng

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

In the traditional form 牆, 爿 gives the sound and 嗇, showing wheat in a granary, gives the wall meaning. The simplified 墙 is a later short form.