队 (duì) — (noun) team, group, squad; (classifier) for groups or columns of people, animals, or vehicles in formation
Definition
队 names a team or group of people (a squad, a lineup). Used as a classifier for people in formation (e.g., a column of students), unlike 组, which groups things or people by set/series.
noun
teamgroupsquad
classifier
for groups or columns of peopleanimalsor vehicles in formation
Measure word · 个
Examples
- 队。Tā jiā rù le wǒ men de duì.He joined our team.
- 队。Cāo chǎng shàng yǒu sān duì xué shēng.There are three teams/columns of students on the playground.
- 队。Zhè ge duì yǒu shí gè rén.This team has ten people.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost 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 隊; 队 is its simplified writing.
Meaning part形符xíngfú
阜阜fù
Sound part声符shēngfú
㒸
㒸㒸隊duì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.
The traditional form 隊 has 阜 as the meaning part and 㒸 as the sound part.
Appears in
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