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银河系 (yín hé xì) — Milky Way Galaxy

Definition

noun
Milky Way Galaxy

Examples

  • 银河系。
    Tiān wén xué jiā zhèng zài yán jiū yín hé xì de jié gòu.
    Astronomers are studying the structure of the Milky Way Galaxy.
  • 银河系。
    yín hé xì Lǐ yǒu shàng qiān yì kē héng xīng.
    The Milky Way Galaxy contains hundreds of billions of stars.
  • 银河系。
    Dì qiú shì yín hé xì de yì xiǎo bù fen.
    Earth is a small part of the Milky Way Galaxy.

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.

银河Milky Way
银yínsilver河hériver
偏正Modifier + head
系xìsystem

银 means silver, 河 means river, and 系 means system, so it names the silver-river system, the Milky Way Galaxy.

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 銀; 银 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
金金jīnmetal
Sound part声符shēngfú
艮
艮gèn銀yín
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 銀 has 金, meaning metal, and 艮, used for the sound; the simplified 银 is a shorthand.

Open 银 →

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
水水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
何
何hé河hé
Same sound today

河 pairs 水 (water) with 何, which gives the sound. The 水 part marks it as a word for a river.

Open 河 →

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

系 is made by putting together 手 (hand) and 糸 (silk).

Open 系 →
Appears in
Sky & Space

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