高发 (gāo fā) — (of diseases, crimes, accidents, etc.) to occur with high frequency; to be prevalent; (historical) to pass the civil service examination

Definition

Used almost exclusively for diseases, crimes, or accidents that occur at a high rate, as in 高发期 ('peak season') and 高发率 ('high incidence rate'). The historical sense (passing the imperial exam) is archaic and not used in modern Chinese.

verb
(of diseases, crimes, accidents, etc.) to occur with high frequencyto be prevalent(historical) to pass the civil service examination

Examples

  • ，高发。
    Jìn nián lái, gāi dì qū xīn xuè guǎn jí bìng gāo fā.
    In recent years, cardiovascular diseases have been occurring with high frequency in this region.
  • 高发。
    Xià jì shì shí wù zhòng dú de gāo fā qī.
    Summer is a period of high incidence of food poisoning.
  • 高发。
    Jǐng fāng zhèng zài cǎi qǔ cuò shī jiàng dī zhè yí dài de dào qiè gāo fā lǜ.
    The police are taking measures to reduce the high rate of theft in this area.

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.

高gāohigh
发fāto pass

高 'high' and 发 'to pass' combine to mean passing the civil service examination.

Characters in this word

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

高 was drawn as a tall building.

Open 高 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 發; 发 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 发 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (爆发, 出发) it is 發; in others (理发, 头发) it is 髮.

The form 發, which 发 stands for in many words, was originally drawn as a bow firing an arrow.

Open 发 →

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