黑纱 (hēi shā) — black armband (worn as a sign of mourning)

Definition

noun

black armband (worn as a sign of mourning)

Measure word · 条

黑纱。
Tā jīn tiān dài zhe hēi shā qù cān jiā zàng lǐ.
She wore a black armband today to attend the funeral.
黑纱。
Suǒ yǒu lái bīn dōu dài le hēi shā.
All the guests wore black armbands.
黑纱。
Tā men shǒu bì shàng xì zhe hēi shā.
They tied black armbands on their arms.

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.

The color 黑 specifies the kind of mourning cloth 纱.

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.

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 紗; 纱 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

糸糸mìthread

Sound part声符shēngfú

沙

Same sound today

The traditional form 紗 uses 糸 to mark a thread-related meaning and 沙 for the sound. The modern simplified 纱 is a shortened form.