一流 (yī liú) — first-class, top quality | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

一流 is a general 'top-quality / first-class' label, used widely for skills, service, or products. Among the siblings, it sits below 顶级/顶尖 (absolute peak) and is less commercial than 高档.

adjective

first-classtop quality

Examples

一流。
Tā de hàn yǔ shuǐ píng shì yī liú de.
His Chinese level is first-class.
一流。
Zhè jiā jiǔ diàn de fú wù shì yī liú de.
The service of this hotel is first-class.
一流。
Wǒ men tuán duì yōng yǒu yī liú de jì shù.
Our team possesses top-class technology.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

一流 joins 一 first with 流 grade, giving first-grade quality.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

一 is drawn as one horizontal stroke, marking the number one.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

水水shuǐwater

Sound part声符shēngfú

㐬

㐬㐬流liú

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

流 has 水, water, and 㐬, which gives the sound. The water part matches meanings such as flow.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 6 HSK 2.0 Level 6 Good & Bad

Browse more HSK 6 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.