菊 (jú) — chrysanthemum (bound morpheme)
Definition
菊 is a bound morpheme meaning 'chrysanthemum' — it only appears inside compounds like 菊花 (chrysanthemum flower), not on its own.
bound form
chrysanthemum (bound morpheme)
Easily confused
- 苟gǒulook-alike(bound form) careless, negligent (in 不苟言笑, 苟且)
- 局júsound-alikeclassifier for games: match, set, round
- 葡púlook-alike(bound morpheme) used in 葡萄 (grape) and 葡萄牙 (Portugal)
- 局júsound-alikenarrow, limited, cramped (usually in compounds like 局限, 局促)
- 橘júsound-aliketangerine; orange (bound form, used in compounds)
- 焗júsound-alike(bound form) to steam-bake in a covered pot (Cantonese cooking method)
Examples
- 。Zhè bēi jú huā chá hěn hǎo hē.This cup of chrysanthemum tea is delicious.
- 。Qiū tiān gōng yuán lǐ yǒu hěn duō jú huā.In autumn, there are many chrysanthemums in the park.
- 。Tā sòng gěi wǒ yí shù jú huā.He gave me a bouquet of chrysanthemums.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost 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cǎo
Sound part声符shēngfú
匊
匊jū菊jú
Same sound today
菊 has 艹 (grass) on top and 匊 below; the grass part marks it as a plant, and 匊 gives the sound.
Appears in
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