绒线 (róng xiàn) — embroidery floss; knitting wool

Definition

绒线 covers both 'embroidery floss' and 'knitting wool' — the thread for hand-stitching decorative work and the yarn for knitting garments. In Mainland China it often means knitting wool; 绣线 is the more specific term for embroidery floss.

noun
embroidery flossknitting wool
Measure word · 根

Examples

  • 绒线。
    Tā yòng róng xiàn xiù le yì duǒ huā.
    She embroidered a flower using floss.
  • 绒线。
    Zhè tuán róng xiàn kě yǐ zhī yì tiáo wéi jīn.
    This ball of knitting wool can make a scarf.
  • 绒线。
    Shāng diàn lǐ mài gè zhǒng yán sè de róng xiàn.
    The store sells all kinds of colors of yarn.

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.

绒róngsoft down
线xiànthread

绒 gives soft down and 线 gives thread, so 绒线 is wool or embroidery floss.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 绒 →

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 線; 线 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糹Written in full as糸mì
Sound part声符shēngfú
泉
泉quán線xiàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 線 uses 糹 (silk/thread) to show the meaning and 泉 to suggest the sound; the simplified 线 is a later shorthand.

Open 线 →

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