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煤气 (méi qì) — gas (fuel), coal gas

Definition

煤气 (méiqì) is specifically gas used as household fuel, for cooking and heating. 燃气 is the broader modern term (including natural gas); 气体 means 'gas' as a scientific substance.

noun
gas (fuel)coal gas

Examples

  • 煤气。
    Wǒ jiā yòng méi qì shāo shuǐ.
    My family uses gas to boil water.
  • 煤气。
    Qǐng guān hǎo méi qì kāi guān.
    Please turn off the gas switch properly.
  • 煤气。
    méi qì Jià gé yòu zhǎng le.
    The gas price has gone up again.

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.

煤méicoal
气qìgas

煤 means coal, and 气 means gas; together they name gas made from coal.

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
火火huǒfire
Sound part声符shēngfú
某
某mǒu煤méi
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

煤 puts 火 (fire) on the left and 某 on the right; the fire part relates to coal, and 某 gives the sound.

Open 煤 →

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 氣; 气 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
米米mǐrice
Sound part声符shēngfú
气
气qì氣qì
Same sound today

The traditional form 氣 pairs 米 (rice) with 气, which supplies the sound; the simplified 气 is a later abbreviation.

Open 气 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Energy & Power

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