胳膊 (gē bo) — arm | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Colloquial word for 'arm' (the body part). 手臂 is the more formal/written equivalent; 肩膀 is the shoulder, not the arm.

noun

arm

Measure word · 只, 条, 双

胳膊。
Tā de yì zhī gē bo hěn téng.
One of his arms hurts a lot.
胳膊。
Wǒ yòng gē bo bào zhe hái zi.
I hold the child with my arms.
胳膊。
Tā de yì shuāng gē bo shàng dài zhuó shǒu biǎo.
She wears a watch on her arms.

Single-morpheme word

构词法gòucífǎ

联绵liánmiánBound pair

Two characters that only ever appear together, spelling one ancient two-syllable word.

胳膊 names the arm as a whole; 胳 and 膊 do not carry separate meanings here.

Sound-only characters

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

各

Same sound today

It combines 肉 (flesh) with 各; the 肉 part relates to the body, and 各 gives the sound.

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

Sound part声符shēngfú

尃

尃fū膊bó

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

膊 combines 肉, meaning body, with 尃, which gives the sound.

Appears in