瘦小 (shòu xiǎo) — thin and small (in stature) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

adjective

thin and small (in stature)

Examples

瘦小。
Nà ge nǚ hái cháng dé shòu xiǎo.
That girl is thin and small.
瘦小。
Tā shēng bìng hòu biàn de hěn shòu xiǎo.
After he got sick, he became very thin and small.
瘦小，。
Suī rán tā shòu xiǎo, dàn lì qi hěn dà.
Although she is thin and small, she is very strong.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

瘦 gives thinness and 小 gives smallness, together describing a thin and small build.

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.

疒叟瘦

Meaning part形符xíngfú

疒疒nè

Sound part声符shēngfú

叟

叟sǒu瘦shòu

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

瘦 is built from 疒 and 叟: 疒 gives the meaning, and 叟 gives the sound.

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

八八bāto divide; to separate
丨丨gǔnsmall object

The shape of 小 comes from three small dots, later elongated into its strokes; the apparent parts 八 and 丨 are a later way of seeing it.

Appears in

Appearance Size & Dimension

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