稀薄 (xī báo) — (of air, gas) thin, rarefied; (of liquid) dilut…

Definition

Used for gases (air, atmosphere) and liquids — 'thin, rarefied' and 'diluted, weak'. A more technical/literary adjective than the everyday 少 or 淡.

adjective

(of air, gas) thinrarefied(of liquid) dilutedweak

稀薄，。
Gāo shān de kōng qì hěn xī báo, hū xī yǒu diǎn kùn nan.
The air on high mountains is thin, making it a bit hard to breathe.
稀薄，。
Zhè zhǒng huà xué róng yè tài xī báo, xū yào zài nóng suō yí xià.
This chemical solution is too diluted and needs to be concentrated further.
稀薄，。
Huǒ xīng de dà qì céng shí fēn xī báo, jī hū méi yǒu yǎng qì.
The atmosphere on Mars is very thin, with almost no oxygen.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

稀xīsparse/thin

稀 and 薄 both convey thinness or lack of density; together they mean rarefied or diluted.

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.

禾希稀

Meaning part形符xíngfú

禾禾hégrain

Sound part声符shēngfú

希

Same sound today

稀 has 禾 (grain) beside 希, and 希 gives the character its sound.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

艹溥薄

Meaning part形符xíngfú

艹Written in full as艸cǎo

Sound part声符shēngfú

溥

溥pǔ薄báo

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

薄 combines 艹, a grass part, with 溥 as the sound part.

Appears in