(zhǐ) — paper

Definition

Examples

  • Wǒ xū yào yì zhāng zhǐ.
    I need a piece of paper.
  • Nà zhāng zhǐ hěn bái.
    That piece of paper is very white.
  • Tā mǎi le liǎng zhāng zhǐ.
    He bought two sheets of paper.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

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 紙; 纸 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
silk
Sound part声符shēngfú
shìzhǐ
Same sound today

For 纸, the traditional form 紙 combines 糸 (silk) with 氏 (the sound part).

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