薄 (báo) — thin (in thickness); weak, light (in taste, emotion, or fertility)
Definition
薄 (báo) means thin in thickness, plus light/weak in taste or fertility — used for physical things, not people. Use 瘦 for a slim person or body, and 细 for a thin/slender shape like thread or hair.
adjective
thin (in thickness)weaklight (in taste, emotion, or fertility)
Examples
- 。Hú miàn shàng jié le báo báo de yī céng bīng.A thin layer of ice formed on the lake surface.
- 薄，。Zhè zhǒng jiǔ wèi dào hěn báo, shì hé nǚ shēng hē.This wine has a light flavor, suitable for women.
- 薄，。Zhè kuài dì tài báo le, zhǒng bù chū hǎo zhuāng jia.This piece of land is too infertile to grow good crops.
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
溥
溥pǔ薄báo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.
薄 combines 艹, a grass part, with 溥 as the sound part.
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