禅师 (chán shī) — Zen master; honorific title for a Buddhist monk

Definition

noun
Zen masterhonorific title for a Buddhist monk
Measure word · 位

Examples

  • 禅师。
    Zhè wèi chán shī zài shān shàng xiū xíng le sān shí nián.
    This Zen master has practiced on the mountain for thirty years.
  • 禅师。
    Wǒ dú guò hěn duō chán shī xiě de shū.
    I have read many books written by Zen masters.
  • 禅师。
    Jù shuō nà wèi chán shī shì yí wèi hěn yǒu zhì huì de rén.
    It is said that that Zen master is a very wise person.

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.

禅chánZen
师shīmaster

禅 means Zen and 师 means master, giving a Zen master.

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 禪; 禅 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
示示shì
Sound part声符shēngfú
單
單dān禪chán
Same sound today

The traditional form 禪 pairs 示, a meaning part, with 單, a sound part; the simplified 禅 is a later abbreviation, so its right side is not the old sound part.

Open 禅 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 師; 师 is its simplified writing.

  • 𠂤𠂤𠂤
  • 帀帀zā

The traditional form 師 combines 𠂤 and 帀; the simplified 师 is not the form explained here.

Open 师 →

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