炸药包 (zhà yào bāo) — (military/demolition) satchel charge, explosive pack; (slang) gift pack of cigarettes or other goodies

Definition

Two distinct senses share this word: literally a satchel charge used in military/demolition work, and colloquially a gift pack (often premium cigarettes) given on holidays.

noun
(military/demolition) satchel chargeexplosive pack(slang) gift pack of cigarettes or other goodies
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 炸药包。
    Shì bīng bēi zhe yí gè zhà yào bāo chōng xiàng le dí rén de zhèn dì.
    The soldier carried a satchel charge and charged toward the enemy position.
  • 炸药包，。
    Tā guò nián shí sòng le wǒ yí gè zhà yào bāo, lǐ miàn quán shì hǎo yān.
    He gave me a gift pack of cigarettes for New Year's, all premium brands inside.
  • 炸药包。
    Gōng bīng yòng zhà yào bāo zhà kāi le nà dǔ qiáng.
    The sapper blew open that wall with an explosive pack.

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.

炸药explosive
炸zhàexplode药yàopowder/medicine
偏正Modifier + head
包bāopackage

炸药 means explosive and 包 means package; together a package of explosive.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 炸 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 藥; 药 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
艹Written in full as艸cǎograss
Sound part声符shēngfú
樂
樂lè藥yào
Same sound today

In the traditional form 藥, 艹 shows grass and 樂 gives the sound; this story is about 藥, not about the simplified 药.

Open 药 →

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

The shape of 包 pictures a fetus in a womb, or a baby wrapped in cloth.

Open 包 →

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