泳

yǒng

氵 + 永

Definitions

yǒng (verb) to swim

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 氵 represents the meaning and 永 represents the sound.

Semantic: 氵 Phonetic: 永

About

泳 (yǒng) is a phono-semantic compound: the left side 氵 (shuǐ, 'water') indicates the meaning, while the right side 永 (yǒng) gives the sound. Although 永 by itself can mean 'eternal' or 'long', here it serves only as a phonetic marker. The character denotes swimming, the act of moving through water, and from its earliest use it has kept this single, literal sense without developing metaphorical or extended meanings.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

他每天去游泳。

Tā měitiān qù yóuyǒng.

He goes swimming every day.

我们在泳池游泳。

Wǒmen zài yǒngchí yóuyǒng.

We swim in the swimming pool.

她买了新的泳衣。

Tā mǎile xīn de yǒngyī.

She bought a new swimsuit.

夏天我喜欢去海边游泳。

Xiàtiān wǒ xǐhuān qù hǎibiān yóuyǒng.

In summer, I like to go swimming at the beach.

游泳是一项很好的运动。

Yóuyǒng shì yí xiàng hěn hǎo de yùndòng.

Swimming is a very good sport.

他参加了学校的游泳比赛。

Tā cānjiāle xuéxiào de yóuyǒng bǐsài.

He participated in the school swimming competition.

泳池的水非常清澈和温暖。

Yǒngchí de shuǐ fēicháng qīngchè hé wēnnuǎn.

The water in the swimming pool is very clear and warm.

在专业的游泳教练指导下，他的泳技术进步很快。

Zài zhuānyè de yóuyǒng jiàoliàn zhǐdǎo xià, tā de yǒngjì jìnbù hěn kuài.

Under the guidance of a professional swimming coach, his swimming skills improved quickly.

Related Characters

Component: 氵

Component: 永

泳