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睡衣 (shuì yī) — pajamas, nightwear

Definition

noun
pajamasnightwear
Measure word · 件

Examples

  • 睡衣。
    Wǒ chuān le yí tào lán sè shuì yī.
    I wore a set of blue pajamas.
  • 睡衣，。
    Zhè jiàn shuì yī hěn shū fu, shì hé shuì jiào chuān.
    These pajamas are very comfortable and suitable for sleeping.
  • 睡衣。
    Wǒ měi tiān wǎn shàng dōu huàn gān jìng shuì yī.
    I change into clean pajamas every evening.

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.

睡shuìsleep
衣yīclothes

睡 means sleep and 衣 means clothes, so it denotes clothes worn for sleeping.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
目目mùeye
Sound part声符shēngfú
垂
垂chuí睡shuì
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

睡 combines 目, an eye, with 垂, which gives its sound.

Open 睡 →

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

The shape of 衣 comes from an outline of the chest and upper clothing.

Open 衣 →
Appears in
Clothing

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