船

chuán

boat

vessel; ship; CL:條|条[tiao2],艘[sou1],隻|只[zhi1]

boat (舟) + compartments (几口) = a proper ship

舟 is the core meaning — a small watercraft. 几 and 口 together suggest the hull's interior: a few open compartments or spaces that make a vessel seaworthy rather than just a raft.

舟+几+口→船
几A low tableSemantic
口MouthSemantic
舟A small boatSemantic

河上有一条小船。

hé shàng yǒu yī tiáo xiǎo chuán。

There is a small boat on the river.

他们坐船从南方来到这里。

tā men zuò chuán cóng nán fāng lái dào zhè lǐ。

They came here from the south by boat.

Words with 船

渔船

yú chuán

fishing boat

船只

chuán zhī

ship

帆船

fān chuán

sailboat

船帆

chuán fān

sail

船尾

chuán wěi

back end of a ship

装船

zhuāng chuán

to load cargo onto a ship

造船厂

zào chuán chǎng

dockyard

水涨船高

shuǐ zhǎng chuán gāo

the tide rises, the boat floats (idiom); fig. to change with the overall trend

船夫

chuán fū

boatman

造船所

zào chuán suǒ

shipyard

造船

zào chuán

shipbuilding

遇难船

yù nán chuán

shipwreck

More characters with 舟

艚艎艨艋盘艏艇