草木 (cǎo mù) — vegetation; plants (in general) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

vegetationplants (in general)

Examples

，草木。
Chūn tiān lái le, cǎo mù kāi shǐ fā yá.
Spring has come, and the vegetation is starting to sprout.
草木。
Zhè zuò shān shàng de cǎo mù fēi cháng mào shèng.
The vegetation on this mountain is very lush.
草木。
Tā duì cǎo mù de shēng zhǎng hěn gǎn xìng qù.
He is very interested in the growth of plants.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

草 “grass” and 木 “tree” combine to mean plants in general.

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.

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

木 is drawn as a tree, with branches above and roots below.

Appears in

Plants & Flowers

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