Definitions

dòu (noun) bean; pea
dòu (noun) sacrificial vessel

Etymology

Pictograph of a stemmed bowl. Based on the original meaning "vessel with a neck". The current meaning is a phonetic loan.

About

Originally depicting a ritual food vessel with a distinct stemmed base, the character "豆" has a pictographic etymology that is reflected in its balanced, container-like structure, and its meaning gradually transitioned from denoting the physical vessel to specifying the legumes it often contained, resulting in its modern definition as "bean" through a common linguistic process where the name of a container becomes associated with its typical contents.

Etymology Hide

Oracle etymology image
Oracle (~1250-1000 BC)
Oracle etymology image
Oracle (~1250-1000 BC)
Oracle etymology image
Oracle (~1250-1000 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Late Shang dynasty (~1100 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Mid Western Zhou (~900 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Late Western Zhou (~800 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Late Western Zhou (~800 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)
Seal etymology image
Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)
Traditional Modern
Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

我每天喝浆。

Wǒ měitiān hē dòujiāng.

I drink soy milk every day.

妈妈煮了红汤。

Māma zhǔ le hóngdòu tāng.

Mom cooked red bean soup.

弟弟不喜欢吃腐。

Dìdi bù xǐhuān chī dòufu.

Younger brother doesn't like to eat tofu.

我们把子放在锅里。

Wǒmen bǎ dòuzi fàng zài guō lǐ.

We put the beans in the pot.

因为健康,我常吃芽。

Yīnwèi jiànkāng, wǒ cháng chī dòuyá.

Because of health, I often eat bean sprouts.

她用沙做了甜点。

Tā yòng dòushā zuò le tiándiǎn.

She used bean paste to make dessert.

这些土是从农场买的。

Zhèxiē tǔdòu shì cóng nóngchǎng mǎi de.

These potatoes were bought from the farm.

研究表明,大富含蛋白质。

Yánjiū biǎomíng, dàdòu fùhán dànbáizhì.

Research shows that soybeans are rich in protein.