海龟 (hǎi guī) — sea turtle | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

sea turtle

Measure word · 只

海龟。
Wǒ zài hǎi biān kàn jiàn le yì zhī hǎi guī.
I saw a sea turtle at the seaside.
海龟。
Zhè zhǒng hǎi guī yuè lái yuè shǎo le.
This kind of sea turtle is getting fewer and fewer.
海龟。
hǎi guī Shēng huó zài hǎi yáng lǐ.
Sea turtles live in the ocean.

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.

海龟 combines 海 sea and 龟 turtle to name a turtle living in 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

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.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 龜; 龟 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 龜 came from a drawing of a turtle seen from the side and above; the simplified 龟 is a later abbreviation.

Appears in