桐

tóng

同 + 木

Definitions

tóng tree name (variously Paulownia, Firmiana or Aleurites)

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 木 represents the meaning and 同 represents the sound.

Semantic: 木 Phonetic: 同

About

桐 is a phono-semantic compound: the wood radical 木 on the left indicates a tree or plant, while the right-hand component 同 (tóng) provides the sound. It designates the Paulownia, a fast-growing deciduous tree especially prized for its lightweight, fine-grained wood, which is extensively used in making traditional stringed musical instruments like the guqin and guzheng. The character also appears in botanical compounds that distinguish visually similar trees, most notably 梧桐, the Chinese parasol tree.

Etymology Hide

Oracle (~1250-1000 BC)

Bronze Late Western Zhou (~800 BC)

Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

院子里有棵桐树。

Yuànzi lǐ yǒu kē tóng shù.

There is a paulownia tree in the yard.

桐花在春天开放。

Tóng huā zài chūntiān kāifàng.

Paulownia flowers bloom in spring.

梧桐叶落满了地。

Wútóng yè luò mǎn le dì.

The leaves of the parasol tree have fallen all over the ground.

他用桐油刷了桌子。

Tā yòng tóng yóu shuā le zhuōzi.

He painted the table with tung oil.

古老的桐树矗立在村口。

Gǔlǎo de tóng shù chùlì zài cūn kǒu.

The ancient paulownia tree stands at the village entrance.

孩子们在桐树下玩耍。

Háizimen zài tóng shù xià wánshuǎ.

The children are playing under the paulownia tree.

每当桐花盛开时，空气中都弥漫着清香。

Měi dāng tóng huā shèngkāi shí, kōngqì zhōng dōu mímàn zhe qīngxiāng.

Whenever the paulownia flowers bloom, the air is filled with a delicate fragrance.

这家工厂专门生产桐油，用于制作防水涂料。

Zhè jiā gōngchǎng zhuānmén shēngchǎn tóng yóu, yòng yú zhìzuò fáng shuǐ túliào.

This factory specializes in producing tung oil, which is used to make waterproof coatings.

Related Characters

Component: 同

Component: 木

桐