机舱

jī cāng · HSK 7

cabin of a plane

✈️ 机 (from 飞机, airplane) + 舱 (cabin/compartment) = the plane's cabin

机 is the machine/plane part of 飞机 (airplane). 舱 means a cabin or hold on any vessel — same character shows up in 船舱 (ship's hold). Put them together and 机舱 is the compartment inside the aircraft.

舱 — boat radical 舟 + cāng 仓 (phonetic)
舱 is a phonetic-semantic compound. The left element 舟 means 'boat' and gives the meaning, while 仓 ('storehouse') supplies the sound cāng. Originally referring to the hold or compartment of a ship, it later extended to cabins in any vessel, including aircraft and spacecraft.

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