蕉

jiāo, qiáo

焦 + 艹

Definitions

jiāo banana

qiáo see 蕉萃[qiáo cuì]

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 艹 represents the meaning and 焦 represents the sound.

Semantic: 艹 Phonetic: 焦

About

蕉 is a phono-semantic compound: the radical 艹 (grass) on top indicates the meaning related to plants, while 焦 below gives the pronunciation. It is used to name large, broad-leaved tropical and subtropical herbs, particularly various species of bananas and plantains. While it rarely stands as an independent word, it forms the root of compounds like 香蕉 (the common banana) and of words for ornamental plants with wide leaves, which are often cultivated in traditional Chinese gardens to provide a leafy contrast against stone walls and courtyards.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

香蕉是一种水果。

xiāng jiāo shì yī zhǒng shuǐ guǒ。

Bananas are a type of fruit.

妹妹每天吃香蕉。

mèi mei měi tiān chī xiāng jiāo。

My younger sister eats bananas every day.

香蕉的皮是黄色的。

xiāng jiāo de pí shì huáng sè de。

The peel of a banana is yellow.

芭蕉树长得很高。

bā jiāo shù zhǎng de hěn gāo。

The plantain tree grows very tall.

超市里的香蕉很新鲜。

chāo shì lǐ de xiāng jiāo hěn xīn xiān。

The bananas in the supermarket are very fresh.

香蕉比苹果更柔软。

xiāng jiāo bǐ píng guǒ gèng róu ruǎn。

Bananas are softer than apples.

因为香蕉有营养，所以我常吃。

yīn wèi xiāng jiāo yǒu yíng yǎng， suǒ yǐ wǒ cháng chī。

Because bananas are nutritious, I often eat them.

热带地区盛产香蕉和芭蕉。

rè dài dì qū shèng chǎn xiāng jiāo hé bā jiāo。

Tropical regions abundantly produce bananas and plantains.

Related Characters

Component: 焦

Component: 艹

蕉