主旋律 (zhǔ xuán lǜ) — (music) theme, leitmotif; main theme, central i…

Definition

Literally 'main melody' in music, but in political and media contexts it means the central theme or guiding idea (of a policy, work, or era).

noun

(music) themeleitmotifmain themecentral idea (of a policy, artwork, discourse, etc.)

主旋律。
Zhè bù jiāo xiǎng yuè de zhǔ xuán lǜ fēi cháng jī áng.
The main theme of this symphony is very stirring.
主旋律。
Hé xié fā zhǎn shì dāng jīn shè huì de zhǔ xuán lǜ.
Harmonious development is the main theme of today's society.
，主旋律。
Zài zhěng bù diàn yǐng zhōng, zhǔ xuán lǜ guàn chuān shǐ zhōng.
Throughout the entire film, the main theme runs through from beginning to end.

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.

旋律melody

偏正Modifier + head

主 means main, 旋 means turning, and 律 means rhythm; together they give the main theme or melody.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The old forms that became 主 showed a lamp or torch with a flame at the top; other forms showed wood on fire or a spirit tablet.

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

旋 combines 㫃 (a flag), 止 (a foot), and 〇 (a circle), and 〇 also gave the sound.

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

彳聿律

Meaning part形符xíngfú

彳彳chì

Sound part声符shēngfú

聿

聿yù律lǜ

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

律 puts 彳 beside 聿: 彳 is the part tied to the meaning, and 聿 is the part tied to the sound.

Appears in