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脱毛 (tuō máo) — to shed hair/fur; to molt; to remove hair (cosmetic)

Definition

脱毛 covers both natural shedding (animals molting) and cosmetic hair removal. For humans the usual reading is 'to remove body hair'; for animals it means 'to shed / molt'.

verb
to shed hair/furto moltto remove hair (cosmetic)

Examples

  • 脱毛。
    Māo měi nián dōu huì tuō máo.
    Cats shed their fur every year.
  • ，。
    Wǒ de gǒu tuō le yí cì máo, xiàn zài máo hěn hòu.
    My dog molted once, now its fur is thick.
  • 脱毛。
    Tā měi gè xià tiān dōu qù měi róng yuàn tuō máo.
    She goes to the beauty salon for hair removal every summer.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

脱tuōshed
毛máohair

脱 means to shed or take off, and 毛 is hair or fur.

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 脫; 脱 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
⺼Written in full as肉ròu
Sound part声符shēngfú
兌
兌duì脫tuō
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 脫 puts ⺼ (meat) beside 兌, which gives the sound; the simplified 脱 is a shorthand, and its parts are not the historical pieces.

Open 脱 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

毛 is drawn as a feather or hair, with its strokes tracing the shape of the feather or hair.

Open 毛 →
Appears in
Hygiene & Grooming

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