The Noun Suffix 头 in 木头, 里头 and 看头

Structure

root + 头 (neutral tone tou) → noun: 木头, 里头, 看头

Suffix 头 is light and toneless: it makes nouns, and no longer means “head”.

这张桌子是木头做的。

When to use The Noun Suffix 头 in 木头, 里头 and 看头

As a suffix, 头 is read in the neutral tone (tou) and no longer means “head”. It turns a root into an ordinary noun: 木 + 头 = 木头 “wood”, 石头 “stone”, 馒头 “steamed bun”. After direction words it makes place words: 里头 “inside”, 外头 “outside”, 前头 “in front”. After some verbs and adjectives it makes abstract nouns, usually with 有 or 没(有)什么: 没什么看头 “nothing worth watching”.

小心，路上有块大石头。

Careful, there’s a big rock on the road.

早饭我吃了两个馒头。

I had two steamed buns for breakfast.

外头冷，你多穿点儿。

It’s cold outside; put on another layer.

箱子里头装的都是书。

The box is full of books.

Pièges courants

Read the suffix in the neutral tone: 木头 is mùtou, not mùtóu.
Don’t add 头 to any noun you like: say 桌子, not 桌头; 头 words are fixed and learned one by one.
Use verb + 头 with 有 or 没什么: 这本书没什么看头, not 这本书不看头.

Exercice ciblé

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这件事很有看。

Cela vaut la peine d'être vu. Complète le nom désignant quelque chose d'intéressant à voir

tou

Sens

noun suffix, read in the neutral tone (as a full word: tóu, head)

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When to use The Noun Suffix 头 in 木头, 里头 and 看头

Pièges courants

Exercice ciblé

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