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黑板 (hēi bǎn) — blackboard

Definition

noun
blackboard
Measure word · 块, 个

Examples

  • 黑板。
    Jiào shì qián miàn yǒu yí kuài hēi bǎn.
    There is a blackboard in front of the classroom.
  • 黑板。
    Tā zhèng zài cā hēi bǎn.
    He is wiping the blackboard.
  • 黑板。
    Jiào shì lǐ de hēi bǎn hěn gān jìng.
    The blackboard in the classroom is very clean.

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.

黑hēiblack
板bǎnboard

黑 describes the color of the 板, giving a black board used for writing.

Characters in this word

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

The shape of 黑 seems to come from drawing a head marked with dots, usually read as facial tattoos.

Open 黑 →

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
木木mùtree
Sound part声符shēngfú
反
反fǎn板bǎn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

板 pairs 木 (tree) with 反 as a sound part.

Open 板 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 3HSK 2.0 Level 3Classroom & Study

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