澡堂 (zǎo táng) — public bathhouse, (coll.) bathhouse | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A 澡堂 is a public bathhouse — a place (often traditional in northern China) where people go to bathe, socialize, and sometimes stay for hours. The everyday term for the place you bathe at home is 浴室.

noun

public bathhouse(coll.) bathhouse

Measure word · 个

Examples

澡堂。
Wǒ xiǎo shí hou cháng qù zǎo táng xǐ zǎo.
I often went to the bathhouse to bathe when I was little.
澡堂。
Zhè jiā zǎo táng yǐ jīng yǒu wǔ shí nián de lì shǐ le.
This bathhouse already has a fifty-year history.
澡堂。
Běi fāng yǒu xiē lǎo zǎo táng xiàn zài hái zài yíng yè.
Some old bathhouses in the north are still open for business.

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.

澡zǎobathing

澡 'bathing' and 堂 'hall' combine to mean a bathhouse.

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

喿

喿zào澡zǎo

Same sound today

澡 uses 水 (water) to show the idea of washing and 喿 to give the sound.

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

Sound part声符shēngfú

尚

尚shàng堂táng

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

堂 uses 土 as a ground/earth part and 尚 for sound.

Appears in

Hygiene & Grooming

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