跛 (bǒ) — (bound form) lame, crippled, limping

Definition

Examples

  • 跛。
    Tā zǒu lù yǒu diǎn bǒ jiǎo.
    He walks with a slight limp.
  • 。
    Nà ge bǒ zi zǒu dé hěn màn.
    That lame person walks very slowly.
  • 跛。
    Tā de bǒ tuǐ shì xiǎo shí hou shuāi shāng de.
    His lame leg was injured in a fall when he was young.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

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
足足zúfoot
Sound part声符shēngfú
皮
皮pí跛bì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

跛 has 足 (foot) on one side and 皮 on the other; 足 is the foot part, and 皮 gives the sound.

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