矩形 (jǔ xíng) — rectangle

Definition

noun
rectangle
Easily confused

Examples

  • 矩形。
    Zhè ge jǔ xíng de miàn jī shì èr shí píng fāng mǐ.
    This rectangle has an area of twenty square meters.
  • 矩形。
    Qǐng huà yí gè jǔ xíng.
    Please draw a rectangle.
  • 矩形。
    jǔ xíng Yǒu sì tiáo biān.
    A rectangle has four sides.

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.

矩jǔsquare/right angle
形xíngshape

矩 supplies the sense of a square or right angle, and 形 is the shape.

Characters in this word

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

The shape of 矩 came from a picture of a man holding a carpenter's square.

Open 矩 →

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
彡彡shān
Sound part声符shēngfú
井
井jǐng形xíng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

形 is made from 彡 and 井, with 井 providing the sound.

Open 形 →

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