(fèng) — seam; crack; narrow slit

Definition

Read fèng: a noun for a seam, crack, or narrow slit — the physical gap itself. (As a verb, féng means 'to sew'.) 裂缝 emphasizes a crack that has opened in a surface; 缝 is the gap or seam in general.

verb
seamcracknarrow slit
Measure word ·

Examples

  • Zhè dào fèng hěn xì, jī hū kàn bú jiàn.
    This crack is very thin, almost invisible.
  • Tā bǎ zhǐ tiáo sāi jìn mén fèng lǐ.
    He stuffed the note into the crack of the door.
  • Yī fu de fèng kāi xiàn le, xū yào fèng yí xià.
    The seam of the clothes has come undone and needs to be sewn.

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 縫; 缝 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
Written in full as
Sound part声符shēngfú
féngfèng(r)
Same sound today

The traditional form 縫 pairs 糸 with 逢; 逢 gives the sound, and 糸 fits the sense. The simplified 缝 is a shorthand.

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