魔方 (mó fāng) — Rubik's cube | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

Rubik's cube

Measure word · 个

Examples

魔方。
Zhè ge mó fāng de yán sè hěn piào liang.
This Rubik's cube has beautiful colors.
魔方。
Tā zhǐ yòng le sān shí miǎo jiù huán yuán le mó fāng.
He solved the Rubik's cube in just thirty seconds.
魔方。
Wǒ xiǎng mǎi yí gè xīn mó fāng lái xué zěn me wán.
I want to buy a new Rubik's cube to learn how to play it.

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.

魔 (“magic”) + 方 (“square”) names the magic cube.

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.

麻鬼魔

Meaning part形符xíngfú

鬼鬼guǐdemon

Sound part声符shēngfú

麻

麻má魔mó

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

魔 pairs 鬼, meaning demon, with 麻, which gives the sound.

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Appears in

Games & Puzzles

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