About
The character "脯" originally denoted dried meat strips, a meaning clearly indicated by its left-side component "肉" (meat), while the right-side component "甫" primarily provided phonetic guidance. This core definition of preserved meat, particularly from animals like ox or deer, remained central for centuries. Over time, the character's application broadened semantically through association; just as dried meat is a solid, flat slab, "脯" came to refer to the chest or breast of certain animals, a sense later extended by analogy to describe the human chest in literary or anatomical contexts. In modern usage, it retains its primary association with dried, often sweetened, fruit or meat products, while the traditional form, which maintains the clearer "肉" component, is structurally identical to the simplified version aside from that radical's standard graphical variation.
Etymology Hide
Example Sentences Hide
这个果脯很好吃。
他拍了拍胸脯保证。
商店里有多种果脯出售。
她用果脯做了甜点。
爷爷的胸脯挺得很直。
这种肉脯来自传统工艺。
在宴会上，果脯是常见的零食。
经过晾晒，水果变成了美味的果脯。