niǔ
noun #8,872

Meanings

  1. 1 knob; button; tie; bond
  2. 2 hub; pivot; link

Examples

HSK 3
Niǔyuē shì Měiguó zuì dà de chéngshì.
New York is the largest city in the United States.
HSK 5
Zhè shì liánjiē liǎng guó de zhòngyào niǔdài.
This is an important bond connecting the two countries.

Tips

usage
rarely appears alone, it's almost always part of a compound: 纽约 (New York), 纽带 (bond/link), 纽扣 (button), 枢纽 (hub/pivot). The core meaning is something that ties or connects.

Components

radical
silk thread (left-side form)
is the silk radical in left-side form. It marks as a thread-and-cord word, grouping it with (knot), (rope), and (tie): buttons and toggles all began as knotted cord.
phonetic
chǒu
second earthly branch; ugly
supplies the reading, shifting from chǒu to niǔ along an old initial pair. The same phonetic surfaces in (twist) and (knob), all clustered around the niu/chou syllable family with senses of turning or twisting.

In Pop Culture

纽约 Niǔyuē
New York
largest U.S. city - transliterates 'New'.
西 Niǔ xī lán
New Zealand
country - Taiwan spelling, mainland uses 新西兰.

Stroke Order

niǔ