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流沙 (liú shā) — shifting sand; quicksand; sediment

Definition

Refers both to loose shifting sand that swallows anything stepping on it (quicksand) and to fine sand carried and deposited by wind or water (sediment). A concrete noun covering a physical phenomenon rather than a single English word.

noun
shifting sandquicksandsediment

Examples

  • ，流沙。
    Zài shā mò zhōng, liú shā shì zuì dà de wēi xiǎn zhī yī.
    In the desert, shifting sand is one of the biggest dangers.
  • 流沙，。
    Rú guǒ bù xiǎo xīn cǎi dào liú shā, kě néng huì xùn sù xiàn jìn qù.
    If you accidentally step on quicksand, you may quickly sink in.
  • 流沙。
    Dì zhì xué jiā yán jiū le zhè piàn qū yù liú shā de chén jī qíng kuàng.
    Geologists studied the sediment condition of the shifting sand in this area.

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.

流liúflowing
沙shāsand

流 describes moving like a flow, and 沙 is sand, together naming shifting sand or quicksand.

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
水水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
㐬
㐬㐬流liú
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

流 has 水, water, and 㐬, which gives the sound. The water part matches meanings such as flow.

Open 流 →

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

沙 puts 少 (dots) beside 水 (water), showing sand on a shoreline.

Open 沙 →
Appears in
Geography & LandformsMaterials & Substances

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