熔岩 (róng yán) — lava

Definition

noun
lava
Measure word · 股
Easily confused

Examples

  • ，熔岩。
    Huǒ shān pēn fā shí, róng yán cóng shān dǐng liú xià lái.
    When a volcano erupts, lava flows down from the summit.
  • 熔岩。
    Kē xué jiā zài yán jiū róng yán de chéng fèn.
    Scientists are studying the composition of lava.
  • 熔岩。
    Zhè xiē hēi sè de yán shí shì lěng què hòu de róng yán.
    These black rocks are cooled lava.

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.

熔róngmelted
岩yánrock

熔 melted and 岩 rock combine to mean molten rock, lava.

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
容
容róng熔
Same sound today

熔 has 火 on the left, showing fire, and 容 on the right, giving its sound.

Open 熔 →

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 巖; 岩 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
山山shānmountain
Sound part声符shēngfú
嚴
嚴yán巖yán
Same sound today

The traditional form 巖 combines 山 (mountain) with 嚴, a part that gives the sound; the simplified 岩 is a later shorthand, and its parts are not the original parts.

Open 岩 →
Appears in
Geography & Landforms

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