北上 (běi shǎng) — to go north; to head northward | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

verb

to go northto head northward

Examples

北上。
Míng nián wǒ men dǎ suàn běi shǎng.
We plan to head north next year.
北上。
Bù duì yǐ jīng fèng mìng běi shǎng.
The troops have been ordered to move north.
北上。
Zuò huǒ chē běi shǎng xū yào shí jǐ gè xiǎo shí.
Going north by train takes over ten hours.

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.

北 gives the direction, and 上 conveys moving toward it.

Characters in this word

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

The form 北 shows two people standing back to back. It originally meant 'back'.

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

上 is drawn as a short horizontal line placed above a longer arc, marking a position above that arc.

Appears in

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