药房 (yào fáng) — pharmacy, drugstore (including hospital pharmac…

Definition

noun

pharmacydrugstore (including hospital pharmacy)

Measure word · 家

药房。
Wǒ qù yào fáng mǎi gǎn mào yào.
I go to the pharmacy to buy cold medicine.
药房。
Zhè jiā yào fáng èr shí sì xiǎo shí yíng yè.
This pharmacy is open 24 hours.
药房。
Yī yuàn lǐ de yào fáng zài mén zhěn lóu yī lóu.
The hospital pharmacy is on the first floor of the outpatient building.

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.

药yàomedicine

药 (medicine) and 房 (room) make a room for medicine.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 藥; 药 is its simplified writing.

艹樂藥

Meaning part形符xíngfú

艹Written in full as艸cǎograss

Sound part声符shēngfú

樂

樂lè藥yào

Same sound today

In the traditional form 藥, 艹 shows grass and 樂 gives the sound; this story is about 藥, not about the simplified 药.

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

戶戶hùdoor

Sound part声符shēngfú

方

Same sound today

房 pairs 戶 (door) with 方 (fāng) as a sound part; 方 can also fit 'side,' as in a side room beside the main room.

Appears in