画画 (huà huà) — to draw; to paint | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

画画 is a separable verb (离合词) — insert objects or completions between the two 画, as in 画一幅画. It means 'to draw / to paint' as a hobby or activity; the noun 画 (a finished picture) is different.

verb

to drawto paint

Examples

画画。
Wǒ cóng xiǎo jiù xǐ huan huà huà.
I've liked drawing since I was a child.
。
Tā huà le yì fú hěn měi dì huà.
He drew a very beautiful painting.
？
Nǐ huà wán huà le ma?
Have you finished drawing?

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

画huàdraw

画huàpicture

One 画 means 'draw' and the other means 'picture', giving the sense of drawing a picture.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 畫; 画 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

聿聿yùbrush

Sound part声符shēngfú

規

規guī畫huà

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 畫 pairs 聿, a brush, with 規 for its sound. The simplified 画 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the old parts.

Open 画 →