铭文 (míng wén) — inscription (on metal, stone, or bronze); epigr…

Definition

An inscription carved or cast on durable material — bronze vessels, stone steles, bells. Refers to the text itself, not the object it sits on.

noun

inscription (on metal, stone, or bronze)epigraph

Measure word · 段

Easily confused

铭文。
Zhè jiàn qīng tóng qì shàng de míng wén jì zǎi le dāng shí de zhòng dà shì jiàn.
The inscription on this bronze vessel records major events of that time.
铭文。
Kǎo gǔ xué jiā zhèng zài yán jiū shí bēi shàng de gǔ dài míng wén.
Archaeologists are studying the ancient inscriptions on the stone stele.
铭文。
Zhè xiē míng wén wèi lì shǐ yán jiū tí gōng le bǎo guì zī liào.
These inscriptions provide valuable material for historical research.

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.

铭 refers to inscribing, and 文 is the text, giving an inscribed text.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 銘; 铭 is its simplified writing.

金名銘

The traditional form 銘 has 金 (metal) and 名 (name), and refers to engraving in metal; the simplified 铭 is a later shorthand.

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

The current form 文 shows a man with head, arms, legs, and chest; the tattoo marks on the chest are no longer drawn.