深水 (shēn shuǐ) — deep water | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

deep water

Examples

深水。
Zhè piàn hú de shēn shuǐ hěn wēi xiǎn.
The deep water in this lake is very dangerous.
深水。
Tā bù gǎn zài shēn shuǐ lǐ yóu yǒng.
He doesn't dare to swim in deep water.
深水。
Qián shuǐ yuán xū yào jīng guò xùn liàn cái néng zài shēn shuǐ zhōng gōng zuò.
Divers need training to work in deep water.

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.

深 gives the quality of depth, and 水 names what is deep: water.

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

𥥍

𥥍𥥍深shēn

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

深 is built from 氵, the side form of 水 “water”, and 𥥍, which supplies the sound.

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

水 is a simple drawing of water flowing.

Appears in

Geography & Landforms

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