蝴蝶 (hú dié) — butterfly

Definition

noun
butterfly
Measure word ·

Examples

  • 蝴蝶
    Wǒ kàn dào yì zhī hú dié tíng zài huā duǒ shàng.
    I see a butterfly resting on a flower.
  • 蝴蝶
    hú dié Zài huā yuán lǐ fēi lái fēi qù, hái zi men hěn kāi xīn.
    The butterfly flies around in the garden, and the children are very happy.
  • 蝴蝶
    Chūn tiān lái le, hú dié yě fēi chū lái le.
    Spring has come, and the butterfly has also flown out.

Origin

Single-morpheme word
构词法gòucífǎ
联绵liánmiánBound pair

Two characters that only ever appear together, spelling one ancient two-syllable word.

Only 蝴蝶 as a whole means butterfly; 蝴 and 蝶 do not carry separate meanings here.

Sound-only characters

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
chónginsect
Sound part声符shēngfú
Same sound today

蝴 uses 虫 to show it is an insect and 胡 to give its sound.

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

蝶 combines 虫, showing an insect-like creature, with 枼, which gives its sound.

Open 蝶 →

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