着名 (zhù míng) — famous, well-known, celebrated

Definition

adjective

famouswell-knowncelebrated

着名。
Tā shì wèi zhù míng de kē xué jiā.
He is a famous scientist.
着名。
Zhè lǐ shì yí gè zhù míng de lì shǐ yí zhǐ.
This is a famous historical site.
着名。
Tā yīn wèi nà bù xiǎo shuō biàn de zhù míng qǐ lái.
She became famous because of that novel.

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.

着zheprominent

名míngname/fame

着 carries the sense of prominent, and 名 refers to name or fame, together suggesting a well-known reputation.

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 著; 着 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

艸艸cǎograss; plant

Sound part声符shēngfú

者

者zhě著zháo

Same sound today

The traditional form 著 puts 艸 (grass; plant) above 者, which gives the sound; the simplified 着 is a later shorthand.

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

夕口名

名 puts 夕 (crescent moon) above 口 (mouth), showing a name spoken in the dark.

Appears in