百合花 (bǎi hé huā) — lily; (figurative) pure maiden | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

lily(figurative) pure maiden

Measure word · 朵

Examples

百合花。
Tā mǎi le yí shù bǎi hé huā fàng zài kè tīng.
She bought a bunch of lilies and put them in the living room.
百合花。
Gōng yuán lǐ de bǎi hé huā kāi dé hěn piào liang.
The lilies in the park are blooming beautifully.
百合花。
Tā chún jié dé jiù xiàng yì duǒ bǎi hé huā.
She is as pure as a lily.

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.

百合lily

百合 names the lily plant, and 花 marks it as a flower.

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.

一白百

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

白

白bái百bǎi

Same sound today

百 combines 一, which carries the number meaning, with 白, which provides the sound.

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

亼口合

亼亼jí
口口kǒumouth

合 shows 亼 and 口 arranged as two mouths speaking together.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

艹化花

Meaning part形符xíngfú

艹Written in full as艸cǎograss; plant

Sound part声符shēngfú

化

Same sound today

花 pairs 艹 (grass; plant) with 化, which gives the sound.

Appears in

Plants & Flowers

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