Definitions

chóu (noun) silk fabric

Etymology

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

Semantic: Phonetic:

About

The character "绸", representing silk fabric, originates from its traditional form "綢", which combines the silk radical "糸" with the component "周" acting primarily as a phonetic indicator. This phono-semantic structure is typical in Chinese script formation, where the radical denotes the material category and the complementary element suggests pronunciation. Historically, the character's meaning has consistently referred to silk textiles, with its usage becoming more fixed in compounds to specify types of silk, such as in "丝绸" for general silk. The written form evolved to "绸" through a streamlining of the silk radical to "纟", a change that reduced stroke count while maintaining the character's fundamental composition and linguistic role.

Etymology Hide

Seal etymology image
Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)
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Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)
Traditional Modern
Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

很柔软。

Sīchóu hěn róuruǎn.

Silk is very soft.

妈妈买了一条巾。

Māma mǎile yī tiáo chóujīn.

Mom bought a silk scarf.

这件缎裙子很漂亮。

Zhè jiàn chóuduàn qúnzi hěn piàoliang.

This silk dress is very beautiful.

他用布擦镜子。

Tā yòng chóubù cā jìngzi.

He uses silk cloth to wipe the mirror.

这种料适合做衬衫。

Zhè zhǒng chóuliào shìhé zuò chènshān.

This type of silk fabric is suitable for making shirts.

虽然缎很贵,但是质量很好。

Suīrán chóuduàn hěn guì, dànshì zhìliàng hěn hǎo.

Although silk is expensive, its quality is very good.

她收集了各种颜色的缎样本。

Tā shōují le gè zhǒng yánsè de chóuduàn yàngběn.

She collected samples of silk fabric in various colors.

由于丝的透气性好,夏天穿衣服很舒适。

Yóuyú sīchóu de tòuqìxìng hǎo, xiàtiān chuān chóu yīfu hěn shūshì.

Because silk has good breathability, wearing silk clothes in summer is very comfortable.