鞘

qiào

肖 + 革

Definitions

qiào scabbard; sheath

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 革 represents the meaning and 肖 represents the sound.

Semantic: 革 Phonetic: 肖

About

The phono-semantic compound 鞘 uses the leather radical 革 on the left to indicate its traditional material, while the right side, 肖, provides the pronunciation. The component 肖 itself is composed of 小 over 肉, but here it functions solely as a phonetic marker. The character’s primary meaning is a scabbard or sheath, the protective case for a sword or knife blade. This radical reflects the historical practice of crafting such sheaths from leather to shield the metal and prevent injury.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

他的剑鞘是黑色的。

Tā de jiànqiào shì hēisè de.

His sword sheath is black.

这把刀的刀鞘很精致。

Zhè bǎ dāo de dāoqiào hěn jīngzhì.

The scabbard of this knife is very exquisite.

骑士将长剑插回了鞘中。

Qíshì jiāng chángjiàn chā huí le qiào zhōng.

The knight sheathed his long sword back into its scabbard.

植物学家研究了玉米的叶鞘结构。

Zhíwùxué jiā yánjiū le yùmǐ de yèqiào jiégòu.

The botanist studied the leaf sheath structure of corn.

刀鞘上的花纹是手工雕刻的。

Dāoqiào shàng de huāwén shì shǒugōng diāokè de.

The patterns on the scabbard are hand-carved.

这种昆虫的翅鞘保护着它柔软的翅膀。

Zhè zhǒng kūnchóng de chìqiào bǎohù zhe tā róuruǎn de chìbǎng.

The elytra of this insect protect its soft wings.

外科医生使用了特制的扩张鞘进行微创手术。

Wàikē yīshēng shǐyòng le tèzhì de kuòzhāng qiào jìnxíng wēichuàng shǒushù.

The surgeon used a specially designed dilation sheath to perform the minimally invasive surgery.

神经鞘瘤是一种起源于神经鞘的肿瘤。

Shénjīng qiàoliú shì yī zhǒng qǐyuán yú shénjīng qiào de zhǒngliú.

A schwannoma is a type of tumor that originates from the nerve sheath.

Related Characters

Component: 肖

Component: 革

鞘