(shā) — used as a phonetic in transliterations (especially in personal and place names)

Definition

莎 is a bound character with no standalone meaning — it appears only as a phonetic component in transliterated foreign names and words (莎士比亚 = Shakespeare, 丽莎 = Lisa). Without it, you can't write these names in Chinese.

bound form
used as a phonetic in transliterations (especially in personal and place names)

Examples

  • Tā de yīng wén míng zì shì lì shā.
    Her English name is Lisa.
  • Wǒ zuì xǐ huan de zuò jiā shì shā shì bǐ yà.
    My favorite writer is Shakespeare.
  • Zhè ge zì shì shā, cháng yòng yú yīn yì wài lái cí.
    This character is ∼, often used for transliterating foreign words.

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