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限量 (xiàn liáng) — (verb-object, separable) to limit the quantity of something; to cap or restrict an amount

Definition

限量 is a separable verb-object: 限 the limit + 量 the quantity, meaning 'to cap/restrict the amount.' Common as an adjective (限量版 = 'limited edition') and often used in commercial contexts to signal scarcity.

verb
(verb-object, separable) to limit the quantity of somethingto cap or restrict an amount

Examples

  • 限量。
    Zhè jiā diàn měi tiān xiàn liáng chū shòu kā fēi.
    This shop sells coffee with a daily limit.
  • ，。
    Tā men xiàn le liáng, měi rén zhǐ néng mǎi yí gè.
    They set a limit; each person can only buy one.
  • 限量。
    Zhè kuǎn xiàn liáng shǒu biǎo fēi cháng shòu huān yíng.
    This limited edition watch is very popular.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

限xiànlimit
量liángquantity

限 means restrict and 量 means amount, so 限量 is to cap an amount.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
⻖Written in full as阜fùmound
Sound part声符shēngfú
艮
艮gèn限xiàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

限 pairs ⻖ (mound, written 阜) with 艮 as a sound part; the mound side gives the sense of a boundary or limit.

Open 限 →

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

  • 日日rìsun
  • 東東dōngbag; east

量 has 日 (sun) over 東 (bag; east). Some explanations suggest measuring under the sun or the sun rising in the east, but the exact origin is unclear.

Open 量 →
Appears in
Quantity & Amount

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