噪

譟

zào

口 + 喿

Definitions

zào (noun) noise; clamor; din

zào (verb) make noise; buzz; chirp

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 口 represents the meaning and 喿 represents the sound.

About

The character 噪 is a phono-semantic compound. Its left-side radical, 口 (mouth), provides the semantic category related to sound or vocalization. The right component, 喿, serves as the phonetic element indicating the pronunciation "zao" and visually suggests multiple birds or mouths in a tree, reinforcing the idea of a clamor. The core meaning refers to the loud, continuous chirping or squawking of birds or insects. This auditory sense later expanded to describe any loud, chaotic noise from human activity or machinery.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

外面噪音很大。

Wài miàn zào yīn hěn dà.

The noise outside is very loud.

工地的噪音影响了居民。

Gōng dì de zào yīn yǐng xiǎng le jū mín.

The noise from the construction site affected the residents.

市场里一片噪杂。

Shì chǎng lǐ yī piàn zào zá.

The market is a scene of noise and chaos.

观众在鼓噪，要求表演开始。

Guān zhòng zài gǔ zào, yāo qiú biǎo yǎn kāi shǐ.

The audience is clamoring for the performance to start.

聒噪的蝉鸣充满了夏天。

Guō zào de chán míng chōng mǎn le xià tiān.

The clamorous cicada songs fill the summer.

噪音污染是一个严重的问题。

Zào yīn wū rǎn shì yī gè yán zhòng de wèn tí.

Noise pollution is a serious problem.

尽管窗户关着，街上的噪音还是传了进来。

Jǐn guǎn chuāng hu guān zhe, jiē shàng de zào yīn hái shì chuán le jìn lái.

Even though the windows are closed, the noise from the street still came in.

为了减少噪音，他们安装了隔音设备。

Wèi le jiǎn shǎo zào yīn, tā men ān zhuāng le gé yīn shè bèi.

In order to reduce noise, they installed soundproofing equipment.

Related Characters

Component: 口

Component: 喿

噪