TongTong
Sign in

鸡头 (jī tóu) — gorgon plant, foxnut (Euryale ferox)

Definition

鸡头 (jī tóu) is the Chinese name for the gorgon plant (Euryale ferox), an aquatic plant cultivated in ponds for its edible seeds used in cooking and traditional Chinese medicine. Don't confuse with the literal meaning 'chicken head'.

noun
gorgon plantfoxnut (Euryale ferox)
Measure word · 颗

Examples

  • 鸡头。
    Zhè zhǒng jī tóu de zhǒng zi kě yǐ chī.
    The seeds of this gorgon plant are edible.
  • 鸡头。
    jī tóu Zài zhōng yào lǐ hěn cháng yòng.
    The gorgon plant is commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine.
  • 鸡头。
    Chí táng lǐ zhǎng le hěn duō jī tóu.
    A lot of gorgon plants grow in the pond.

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.

鸡jīchicken
头tóuhead

鸡 and 头 combine as 'chicken head,' evoking the plant's shape or seeds.

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 雞; 鸡 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
隹隹zhuīshort-tailed bird
Sound part声符shēngfú
奚
奚xī雞jī
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 雞 pairs 奚, which gives the sound, with 隹, a short-tailed bird. The simplified 鸡 is a later shorthand, and its right side is not the historical 奚.

Open 鸡 →

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 頭; 头 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
頁頁yèhead
Sound part声符shēngfú
豆
豆dòu頭tóu
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 頭 shows 頁, meaning head, beside 豆 as a sound component; the simplified 头 is a later shorthand.

Open 头 →
Appears in
Plants & Flowers

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.