草坪 (cǎo píng) — lawn | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

草坪 is a manicured lawn — typically the tended grass around a building or campus. It contrasts with 草地, which is broader grass-covered ground like fields or meadows, and is not a sports area like 操场.

noun

lawn

Measure word · 块

Examples

草坪。
Zhè piàn cǎo píng xū yào dìng qī xiū jiǎn.
This lawn needs regular trimming.
草坪。
Xiǎo gǒu zài cǎo píng shàng dǎ gǔn wán shuǎ.
The puppy is rolling and playing on the lawn.
草坪。
Tā men zài xiào yuán de cǎo píng shàng jǔ bàn le yì chǎng yīn yuè huì.
They held a concert on the campus lawn.

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.

坪píngflat ground

‘草’ (grass) on ‘坪’ (flat ground) names a lawn.

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.

艹早草

Meaning part形符xíngfú

艹Written in full as艸cǎograss; plant

Sound part声符shēngfú

早

早zǎo草cǎo

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

草 pairs 艹 (grass; plant) with 早, which gives the sound. The form originally referred to another word and was later used for the grass sense.

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

土平坪

Meaning part形符xíngfú

土土tǔearth

Sound part声符shēngfú

平

平píng坪píng

Same sound today

坪 puts 土 (earth) beside 平, which gives its sound.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Plants & Flowers

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