Definitions

duǒ (noun) battlement; target
duò (noun,verb) pile

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. represents the meaning and represents the sound. Simplified form of .

Semantic: Phonetic:

About

The character 垛 is a phono-semantic compound, with the earth radical 土 on the left providing its semantic category related to earth, construction, or ground formations, and the phonetic component 朵 on the right. Depending on pronunciation, it functions as a noun for the raised parapets or battlements atop defensive city walls, or as both a verb and noun for stacking items into a neat pile. In agricultural and domestic contexts, it often describes orderly stacks of hay, firewood, or bricks, while its architectural sense refers to historical defensive structures built to shelter archers and guards. Thus, the character connects military architecture with everyday organizational tasks, with the earth radical grounding both meanings.

Etymology Hide

Seal etymology image
Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Jin dynasty (266-420 AD)
Traditional Modern
Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

麦子堆成了

Mài zi duī chéng le duǒ.

The wheat was piled into a stack.

农场里有许多干草

Nóngchǎng lǐ yǒu xǔduō gāncǎo duǒ.

There are many haystacks on the farm.

他把收割的稻草整齐地码成了

Tā bǎ shōugē de dàocǎo zhěngqí de mǎ chéng le duǒ.

He neatly stacked the harvested rice straw into a pile.

孩子们喜欢在草后面玩捉迷藏。

Háizimen xǐhuan zài cǎoduò hòumiàn wán zhuōmícáng.

The children like to play hide-and-seek behind the haystacks.

丰收后,田边堆起了一个个金黄的谷

Fēngshōu hòu, tián biān duī qǐle yī gègè jīnhuáng de gǔ duǒ.

After the harvest, golden grain stacks were piled up by the fields.

为了防止雨水,他们用塑料布盖住了新垒的柴

Wèile fángzhǐ yǔshuǐ, tāmen yòng sùliàobù gài zhùle xīn lěi de cháiduò.

To protect from the rain, they covered the newly built woodpile with a plastic sheet.

城墙上的口在夕阳下显得格外庄严。

Chéngqiáng shàng de duǒkǒu zài xīyáng xià xiǎnde géwài zhuāngyán.

The battlements on the city wall looked particularly solemn in the setting sun.

这些砖不仅起到了支撑作用,还构成了独特的景观。

Zhèxiē zhuānduò bùjǐn qǐdàole zhīchēng zuòyòng, hái gòuchéngle dútè de jǐngguān.

These brick buttresses not only serve a supporting function but also form a unique landscape.