腋窝 (yè wō) — armpit | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

armpit

Measure word · 个

腋窝。
Wǒ de yè wō yǒu diǎn yǎng.
My armpit feels a bit itchy.
腋窝。
Pǎo bù hòu yè wō chū hàn shì zhèng cháng de.
It's normal for armpits to sweat after running.
腋窝。
Tā yè wō nà lǐ shòu shāng le.
He got injured in his armpit.

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.

腋yèarmpit

腋 (armpit) modifies 窝 (hollow), naming the armpit hollow.

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

肉肉ròuflesh

Sound part声符shēngfú

夜

Same sound today

腋 puts 肉 (flesh) beside 夜, which gives 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 窩; 窝 is its simplified writing.

穴咼窩

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

咼

咼wāi窩wō

Same sound today

The traditional form 窩 uses 穴, a cave, for meaning and 咼 for sound; the simplified 窝 is a later shorthand.

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