格子花呢

gé zi huā ní

tartan; plaid

格

gé

square

子

zi

noun suffix, as in 椅子[yi3 zi5] "chair"

花

huā

variant of 花[hua1]

呢

ní

dense wool fabric (used for coats and jackets)

grid (格) + child (子) + flower (花) + wool (呢) = tartan plaid fabric

格子 evokes a small grid or lattice pattern, and 花 layers in the idea of colorful, blooming decoration across it. 呢 names the dense woolen cloth itself, so together the word literally conjures a flower-patterned grid woven into wool — which is exactly what tartan is.

他今天穿了一件格子花呢外套。

tā jīn tiān chuān le yī jiàn gé zi huā ní wài tào。

he wore a tartan jacket today.

这条格子花呢裙子颜色很好看,你觉得呢?

zhè tiáo gé zi huā ní qún zi yán sè hěn hǎo kàn,nǐ jué de ne?

the colors of this plaid skirt look very nice, don't you think?