花呢 (huā ní) — tweed; fancy suiting fabric

Definition

noun
tweedfancy suiting fabric
Measure word · 块

Examples

  • 花呢。
    Zhè jiàn huā ní wài tào fēi cháng nuǎn huo.
    This tweed coat is very warm.
  • 花呢。
    Tā chuān le yì shēn huī sè huā ní xī zhuāng.
    He was wearing a gray tweed suit.
  • 花呢。
    Dōng tiān chuān huā ní kù zi hěn hé shì.
    Wearing tweed pants in winter is very suitable.

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.

花huāfancy
呢necloth

花 suggests a patterned or fancy surface, and 呢 is a cloth, giving tweed or fancy suiting.

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
艹Written in full as艸cǎograss; plant
Sound part声符shēngfú
化
化huà花
Same sound today

花 pairs 艹 (grass; plant) with 化, which gives the sound.

Open 花 →

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
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
尼
尼ní呢ní
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

呢 combines 口 (mouth) with 尼 as its sound part.

Open 呢 →

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