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肾脏 (shèn zàng) — kidney

Definition

noun
kidney
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 肾脏。
    Yī shēng jiǎn chá le tā de shèn zàng gōng néng.
    The doctor examined his kidney function.
  • 肾脏。
    Duō hē shuǐ duì shèn zàng yǒu hǎo chù.
    Drinking more water is good for the kidneys.
  • 肾脏。
    Zhū shèn zàng zài cài shì chǎng hěn cháng jiàn.
    Pig kidneys are very common at the market.

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.

肾shènkidney
脏zāngorgan

“肾” names the kidney and “脏” means organ, together kidney.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 腎; 肾 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
⺼Written in full as肉ròumeat; flesh
Sound part声符shēngfú
臤
臤qiān腎shèn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 腎 pairs ⺼ (flesh) with 臤 as a sound hint, and it names a body part, the kidneys. The simplified 肾 is a later shorthand.

Open 肾 →

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 髒; 脏 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 脏 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (心脏) it is 臟; in others (脏) it is 髒.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
骨骨gǔbone
Sound part声符shēngfú
葬
葬zàng髒zàng
Same sound today

The traditional form 髒 combines 骨 (bone) with 葬 (zàng) for the sound.

Open 脏 →
Appears in
Organs & Anatomy

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