火柴 (huǒ chái) — match (for lighting fire) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

match (for lighting fire)

Measure word · 根, 盒

Examples

火柴，。
Tā huà le yì gēn huǒ chái, diǎn zháo le là zhú.
He struck a match and lit the candle.
火柴。
Mā ma zài chāo shì mǎi le yì hé huǒ chái.
Mom bought a box of matches at the supermarket.
，。
Xiǎo hái zi bú yào wán huǒ chái, hěn wēi xiǎn.
Kids shouldn't play with matches — it's dangerous.

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.

柴cháifirewood

“火” suggests fire and “柴” suggests wood, together naming a match.

Characters in this word

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

火 is a simple drawing of a fire, with flames shown rising upward.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

此木柴

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

此

此cǐ柴chái

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

In 柴, the lower part 木 shows it is about wood, while the upper part 此 supplies the sound.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 6 HSK 2.0 Level 5 Miscellaneous Objects

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