西瓜 (xī guā) — watermelon

Definition

noun
watermelon
Measure word · 颗, 个

Examples

  • 西瓜
    Zhè kuài xī guā hěn xīn xiān.
    This piece of watermelon is very fresh.
  • 西瓜
    Wǒ men zuó tiān mǎi le liǎng kē xī guā, jīn tiān chī wán le.
    We bought two watermelons yesterday and finished them today.
  • 西瓜
    Bà ba bǎ xī guā qiē chéng xiǎo kuài, dà jiā yì qǐ chī.
    Dad cut the watermelon into small pieces, and everyone ate together.

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.

西Western
guāmelon

西 (Western) + 瓜 (melon) names the watermelon.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 西 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 瓜 is drawn from a melon hanging from its vines, which matches its meaning.

Open 瓜 →

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