表

錶
biǎo
noun HSK 4 #1,763

Measure Word

一块表 kuài

Meanings

  1. 1 watch
  2. 2 meter
  3. 3 form

Characters

Originally depicted fur 毛 on the outside of clothing - the outer surface.

Examples

HSK 1
Nǐ de biǎo jǐ diǎn le?
What time is it on your watch?
HSK 1
Wǒ mǎi le yī kuài xīn biǎo.
I bought a new watch.
HSK 5
Qǐng tián yíxià zhège biǎo.
Please fill out this form.

Tips

usage
As 'watch': 手表 (shǒubiǎo). As 'form/table': 表格 (biǎogé). As 'to express': that's the verb usage (表示, 表达).
mistakes
The traditional character 錶 specifically means 'watch/timepiece'. The more general 表 is used for 'to express' and 'form/table'.

Components

radical
衣 yī
clothing; garment
Bottom garment radical (Kangxi #145) - also mildly contracted to 5 strokes (standalone 衣 has 6) because the top horizontal of 衣 was absorbed into the 毛 above. The indexing radical of 表. Together with the fur on top: 'fur worn on the outside of clothing' = the visible / outer / surface side of things. Same radical anchors 装, 裳, 袋, 衫 - the clothing family.
semantic
毛 máo
fur; hair
Top fur/hair - a pictograph of a tuft of animal hair. Here mildly contracted to 3 strokes (standalone 毛 has 4); the bottom hook gets absorbed into the 衣 below. Carries the literal etymology: 表 originally pictured fur on the OUTSIDE of clothing - the hide-side of a fur garment, which is what shows on the surface. Hence every modern sense of 表: outside, surface, show, express, watch-face.

Stroke Order

表 biǎo