船

Etymology & Components

The Chinese character 船 (chuán) for "boat" is a pictograph that depicts a boat with a sail. The character is composed of two parts: the radical 舟 (zhōu), which means "boat," and the phonetic component 川 (chuān), which is a simplified form of the character for "river." The radical 舟 is also used in other characters related to boats, such as 舰 (jiàn) for "warship" and 艇 (tǐng) for "small boat." The phonetic component 川 is also used in other characters related to water, such as 河 (hé) for "river" and 湖 (hú) for "lake."The character 船 has been used in Chinese for over 3,000 years. It is one of the most common characters in the Chinese language, and it is used in a variety of contexts. For example, 船 can be used to refer to a boat of any size, from a small rowboat to a large ocean liner. It can also be used to refer to the act of sailing or boating.The character 船 is a rich and complex character with a long history. It is a valuable addition to any HSK learner's vocabulary.