白鹳 (bái guàn) — white stork (Ciconia ciconia)

Definition

noun

white stork (Ciconia ciconia)

Measure word · 只

白鹳，。
bái guàn Shì yì zhǒng dà xíng shè qín, shēng huó zài shī dì dì qū.
The white stork is a large wading bird that lives in wetland areas.
，白鹳。
Měi nián qiū tiān, bái guàn huì qiān xǐ dào nán fāng guò dōng.
Every autumn, white storks migrate south for the winter.
白鹳。
Zhè běn tú jiàn xiáng xì jì lù le bái guàn de fēn bù yǔ xí xìng.
This field guide records in detail the distribution and habits of the white stork.

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.

白 gives the white color and 鹳 names the stork, together meaning white stork.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

白 is thought to picture either an acorn or a human head.

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 鸛; 鹳 is its simplified writing.

雚鳥鸛

Meaning part形符xíngfú

鳥鳥niǎobird

Sound part声符shēngfú

雚

雚guàn鸛guàn

Same sound today

The traditional form 鸛 pairs 鳥 (bird) with 雚. 雚, an earlier form for 'stork', also gave the sound; the simplified 鹳 is a later shorthand.