银鱼 (yín yú) — whitebait | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

whitebait

Measure word · 条

Examples

银鱼，。
Zhè zhǒng yín yú fēi cháng xiǎo, dàn hěn hǎo chī.
This type of whitebait is very small but delicious.
银鱼。
Wǒ xǐ huan yòng yín yú zuò tāng.
I like to make soup with whitebait.
银鱼。
Jīn tiān zài chāo shì mǎi le yí dài yín yú.
I bought a bag of whitebait at the supermarket today.

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 gives silver and 鱼 gives a fish, together naming a silvery fish.

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.

金艮銀

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.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 魚; 鱼 is its simplified writing.

For 鱼, the traditional form 魚 is a picture of a fish.

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