海警 (hǎi jǐng) — coast guard (organization or vessel)

Definition

Short for 海岸警卫队 / 海上警察 — China's coast guard, the state agency that patrols coastal waters, inspects vessels, and enforces maritime law.

noun
coast guard (organization or vessel)
Measure word · 个
Easily confused

Examples

  • 海警。
    Zhōng guó hǎi jǐng zài nán hǎi zhí xíng xún luó rèn wu.
    The Chinese coast guard is carrying out patrol missions in the South China Sea.
  • 海警。
    Nà sōu hǎi jǐng chuán zhèng zài jiǎn chá fēi fǎ bǔ yú huó dòng.
    That coast guard vessel is inspecting illegal fishing activities.
  • 海警。
    Hǎi shàng de jiù yuán gōng zuò yóu hǎi jǐng fù zé.
    Rescue operations at sea are handled by the coast guard.

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hǎisea
警jǐngpolice/guard

海 (sea) and 警 (police/guard) mean a police force or vessel operating at 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.

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.

Open 海 →

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
言言yánspoken language, speech
Sound part声符shēngfú
敬
敬jìng警
Same sound today

警 places 言 (speech) below 敬; 敬 gives the sound.

Open 警 →

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