秋日 (qiū rì) — autumn day; autumn sunlight

Definition

noun

autumn dayautumn sunlight

Measure word · 个

秋日。
qiū rì De yáng guāng wēn nuǎn ér róu hé.
The autumn sunlight is warm and gentle.
秋日，。
Tā xǐ huan zài qiū rì sàn bù, gǎn shòu liáng shuǎng de fēng.
He likes to take a walk on an autumn day and feel the cool breeze.
秋日，。
qiū rì De jǐng sè rú huà, ràng rén xīn kuàng shén yí.
The autumn scenery is picturesque, making one feel relaxed and happy.

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.

日rìsun/day

秋日 joins 秋 (autumn) with 日 (sun/day), giving an autumn day or autumn sunlight.

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

禾禾hégrain

Sound part声符shēngfú

𤒅

𤒅𤒅秋qiū

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The shape 秋 pairs 禾 (grain) with 𤒅, which gives the sound.

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

日 originally drew the sun. A mark was added inside to tell it apart from similar square shapes.