蓝领 (lán lǐng) — blue-collar worker | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

blue-collar worker

Examples

。
Hěn duō lán lǐng gōng rén cóng shì zhì zào yè gōng zuò.
Many blue-collar workers are employed in manufacturing.
蓝领。
lán lǐng Hé bái lǐng de gōng zī chā jù zài suō xiǎo.
The wage gap between blue-collar and white-collar workers is narrowing.
蓝领，。
Tā chū shēn lán lǐng jiā tíng, kào nǔ lì chéng wéi gōng chéng shī.
He comes from a blue-collar family and became an engineer through hard work.

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.

A 领 that is 蓝 suggests blue-collar workers.

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 藍; 蓝 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

艸艸cǎograss

Sound part声符shēngfú

監

監jiān藍lán

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

For 蓝, the traditional form 藍 has 艸, grass, above 監, which gives the sound.

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 領; 领 is its simplified writing.

令頁領

Meaning part形符xíngfú

頁頁yè

Sound part声符shēngfú

令

令lìng領lǐng

Same sound today

The traditional form 領 has 令 as a sound part and 頁 as a meaning part; the simplified 领 is a later shorthand.

Appears in

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