(yuán) — ape

Definition

noun
ape
Measure word ·

Examples

  • yuán Shì rén lèi jìn huà guò chéng zhōng de zhòng yào huán jié.
    Apes are an important link in the process of human evolution.
  • Dòng wù yuán lǐ de yuán fēi cháng cōng ming, huì mó fǎng rén de dòng zuò.
    The apes in the zoo are very smart and can imitate human actions.
  • Kē xué jiā tōng guò yán jiū yuán de xíng wéi lái liǎo jiě zǎo qī rén lèi.
    Scientists study ape behavior to understand early humans.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

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
Written in full asquǎn
Sound part声符shēngfú
yuányuán
Same sound today

The left part 犭, written in full as 犬, shows an animal; the right part 袁 gives the sound.

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