海岸 (hǎi àn) — coast, seashore | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

海岸 specifically means the sea coast — the land along the ocean. 岸 is more general and includes river/lake banks; 海滨 is a synonym focused on the seaside.

noun

coastseashore

Examples

，。
Zhè tiáo hǎi àn xiàn hěn cháng, yǒu jǐ bǎi gōng lǐ.
This coastline is very long, several hundred kilometers.
海岸。
Hái zi men zài hǎi àn biān jiǎn bèi ké.
The children are picking up seashells by the seashore.
海岸。
Zhèng fǔ zhèng zài bǎo hù hǎi àn de shēng tài huán jìng.
The government is protecting the ecological environment of the coast.

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.

海 means “sea” and 岸 means “shore”, so 海岸 is the shore of the sea.

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.

氵每海

Meaning part形符xíngfú

氵Written in full as水shuǐwater

Sound part声符shēngfú

每

每měi海hǎi

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

海 pairs 氵 (water) with 每, which gives the sound. The 氵 side shows it is about water.

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

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.

Appears in

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