肤 (fū) — skin (bound morpheme, used in compounds)

Definition

肤 (fū) is a bound morpheme meaning 'skin' — it almost never stands alone and appears only in compounds like 皮肤, 肤色, and 护肤. Use it when you see it as a building block, not as a word.

bound form
skin (bound morpheme, used in compounds)
Easily confused

Examples

  • 。
    Tā de pí fū hěn bái.
    Her skin is very white.
  • 。
    Bù tóng mín zú de fū sè bù yí yàng.
    Different ethnic groups have different skin colors.
  • 肤。
    Tā měi tiān yòng hù fū chǎn pǐn.
    She uses skincare products every day.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
肉肉ròuflesh
Sound part声符shēngfú
夫
夫fū肤fū
Same sound today

The shape of 肤 comes from 肉, flesh, plus 夫, which gives the sound.

Appears in
Body Parts

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