肌体 (jī tǐ) — (formal) the human body; the physical organism | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Formal/literary term for the human body as a physical organism, often used in medical or metaphorical writing (e.g. an organization's 'body'). Most everyday contexts use 身体.

noun

(formal) the human bodythe physical organism

Easily confused

机体jī tǐlook-alikeorganism (living body)

Examples

肌体。
Cháng qī áo yè huì sǔn hài jī tǐ jiàn kāng.
Staying up late for a long time will damage the body's health.
肌体。
Yùn dòng néng zēng qiáng jī tǐ de miǎn yì lì.
Exercise can strengthen the body's immune system.
肌体。
Zhè ge zǔ zhī de jī tǐ yǐ jīng chū xiàn le wèn tí.
This organization's body has already developed problems.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéSide by side

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

肌jīmuscle

肌 and 体 name muscle and body, forming a formal term for the whole organism.

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

⺼Written in full as肉ròu

Sound part声符shēngfú

几

几jǐ肌jī

Same sound today

In 肌, the left part ⺼ is the flesh form, matching muscle or flesh, while the right part 几 supplies the sound.

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 體; 体 is its simplified writing.

骨豊體

Meaning part形符xíngfú

骨骨gǔbone

Sound part声符shēngfú

豊

豊lǐ體tǐ

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 體 pairs 骨 (bone) with 豊 as a sound part; this note is about 體, not about the parts of 体.

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