车钩 (chē gōu) — (railway) coupling

Definition

Specialized railway term for the mechanical coupling device that links train cars together. A purely technical noun — no near-synonym in the curriculum, so just learn it as the part on a train that joins two carriages.

noun
(railway) coupling
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 车钩。
    Huǒ chē de chē gōu shì lián jiē chē xiāng de zhòng yào bù jiàn.
    The coupling of a train is an important part for connecting carriages.
  • 车钩，。
    Sī jī jiǎn chá le chē gōu, què bǎo méi yǒu sōng dòng.
    The driver checked the coupling to make sure it was not loose.
  • 车钩。
    Gēng huàn sǔn huài de chē gōu xū yào zhuān yè gōng jù.
    Replacing a damaged coupling requires professional tools.

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.

车chēvehicle
钩gōuhook

车钩 joins vehicles, with 车 indicating vehicle and 钩 indicating hook.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 車; 车 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 車 was drawn as a carriage seen from above, with wheels on both sides and a shaft at the front; the simplified 车 is a later shorthand.

Open 车 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 钩 →

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