航海 (háng hǎi) — to sail, to navigate (the seas) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Maritime sailing/navigation by sea. Among the 航∼ siblings, 航海 is the sea-specific verb, vs 航空 (air) and 航天 (space).

verb

to sailto navigate (the seas)

Examples

航海。
Tā cóng xiǎo jiù mèng xiǎng háng hǎi.
He has dreamed of sailing the seas since childhood.
航海。
háng hǎi Xū yào fēng fù de hǎi yáng zhī shi.
Sailing the seas requires rich ocean knowledge.
航海。
Tā zhèng zài xué xí háng hǎi jì shù.
He is learning navigation technology studies.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

航hángnavigate

“航” means to navigate and “海” is the sea, so the sense is sailing on the sea.

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.

舟亢航

Meaning part形符xíngfú

舟舟zhōuboat

Sound part声符shēngfú

亢

亢kàng航háng

Same sound today

航 shows a boat with 舟, and 亢 gives the character its sound.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

氵每海

Meaning part形符xíngfú

氵Written in full as水shuǐwater

Sound part声符shēngfú

每

每měi海hǎi

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

海 pairs 氵 (water) with 每, which gives the sound. The 氵 side shows it is about water.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Boats & Water Travel

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