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男孩 (nán hái) — boy

Definition

noun
boy
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 男孩。
    Nà ge nán hái zhèng zài tī zú qiú.
    That boy is playing soccer.
  • 男孩。
    nán hái Men zài xué xiào lǐ wán dé hěn kāi xīn.
    The boys are having a great time at school.
  • 男孩。
    Tā yǒu yí gè wǔ suì de nán hái.
    She has a five-year-old boy.

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.

男nánmale
孩háichild

男 specifies the male sex, while 孩 refers to a child.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

男 is made from 田, a field, and 力, strength. It shows a man working with strength in a field.

Open 男 →

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
子子zǐ
Sound part声符shēngfú
亥
亥hài孩hái
Same sound today

In 孩, the left part 子 shows a child, while the right part 亥 supplies the sound.

Open 孩 →
Appears in
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