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边线 (biān xiàn) — sideline (in sports, e.g. tennis, basketball); foul line (in baseball); edge of text on a page

Definition

边线 (biānxiàn) refers to a boundary line on a playing field or court, or the edge margin of a printed page. In sports, it marks the limit of the playing area (sideline / foul line).

noun
sideline (in sports, e.g. tennis, basketball)foul line (in baseball)edge of text on a page
Measure word · 条

Examples

  • 边线，。
    Qiú luò zài le biān xiàn wài miàn, shì jiè wài.
    The ball landed outside the sideline — it's out.
  • 边线，。
    Zhè ge qiú yuè guò le biān xiàn, suǒ yǐ bú suàn dé fēn.
    This ball crossed the foul line, so it doesn't count as a point.
  • 边线。
    Pái bǎn shí yào zhù yì yè miàn de biān xiàn liú bái.
    When typesetting, pay attention to leaving white space at the page edges.

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.

边biānedge
线xiànline

边 (edge) and 线 (line) combine to mean the line marking an edge.

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 邊; 边 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辶Written in full as辵chuòwalking; movement
Sound part声符shēngfú
臱
臱mián邊biān(r)
Same sound today

The traditional form 邊 pairs 辶 (walking; movement) with the sound part 臱; the simplified 边 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the original parts.

Open 边 →

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 線; 线 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糹Written in full as糸mì
Sound part声符shēngfú
泉
泉quán線xiàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 線 uses 糹 (silk/thread) to show the meaning and 泉 to suggest the sound; the simplified 线 is a later shorthand.

Open 线 →
Appears in
Sports & Athletics

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