清道 (qīng dào) — to clean/sweep the streets; (historical) to clear the way for a monarch or official

Definition

清道 (qīngdào) is a formal/archaic verb meaning to clean the streets or to clear a path for a royal or official procession. In modern use it usually appears as part of the compound 清道夫 ('street sweeper') or 清道工.

verb
to clean/sweep the streets(historical) to clear the way for a monarch or official

Examples

  • 清道。
    Huán wèi gōng rén měi tiān qīng chén dōu yào qīng dào.
    Sanitation workers have to clean the streets every early morning.
  • ，。
    Zài gǔ dài, huáng dì chū xíng qián wèi duì huì qīng yí cì dào.
    In ancient times, the guard would clear the way once before the emperor traveled.
  • 清道。
    Zhè tiáo jiē měi tiān dōu yǒu zhuān rén qīng dào.
    This street has someone specially assigned to clean it every day.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

清qīngclean
道dàoroad

“清” means clean and “道” means road, so it describes clearing a path.

Characters in this word

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
氵Written in full as水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
青
青qīng清qīng
Same sound today

清 has 氵 (water) on the left and 青 on the right to show its sound.

Open 清 →

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
行行xíngstreet
止止zhǐfoot
Sound part声符shēngfú
𩠐
首shǒu道dào
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

Early 道 showed a street 行, a foot 止, and a part written 首 or 𩠐; the right part of 行 later disappeared.

Open 道 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.