轮胎 (lún tāi) — tire | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

轮胎 specifically means the rubber tire on a vehicle. 轮 by itself is the wheel (rim + disk), while 胎 alone also means tire as a loanword but is rare in everyday use.

noun

tire

Measure word · 个

Examples

，。
Qián lún tāi de qì yā yǒu diǎn dī, xū yào dǎ qì.
The front tire's pressure is a bit low; it needs to be inflated.
。
Xià xuě tiān kāi chē zuì hǎo zhuāng shàng fáng huá lún tāi.
When driving in snowy weather, it's best to install snow tires.
轮胎。
Tā bǎ bèi yòng lún tāi cóng hòu bèi xiāng ná le chū lái.
He took the spare tire out of the trunk.

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.

轮 'wheel' and 胎 'tire' combine to name the tire on a wheel.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 輪; 轮 is its simplified writing.

車侖輪

Meaning part形符xíngfú

車車jūcarriage

Sound part声符shēngfú

侖

侖lún輪lún

Same sound today

The traditional form 輪 uses 車, a carriage, and 侖 for the sound; the simplified 轮 is a later shorthand.

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

⺼Written in full as肉ròu

Sound part声符shēngfú

台

台tái胎tāi

Same sound today

胎 is formed from ⺼ (written in full as 肉) and 台, which gives the sound.

Appears in

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