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, composed of the earth radical 土 and the phonetic component 朵 which originally depicted a hanging cluster of flowers or fruit, inherently suggests a solid, piled-up mass rising from the ground. Its core meaning has consistently referred to a solid, often rectangular mound or platform, initially serving practical agricultural and defensive purposes such as a raised earthen base for storing harvested grain or a fortified buttress reinforcing a city wall. From this tangible foundation, its application extended to architectural features, specifically denoting the regular, tooth-like battlements atop a rampart, drawing a visual parallel to the solid, recurring units of a defensive structure. Over time, while retaining its architectural sense, the character's most common usage shifted back towards denoting any stout, neatly stacked pile, such as a haystack or a stack of firewood, thereby maintaining its fundamental concept of accumulated solidity derived from its etymological construction.

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.