熟读 (shú dú) — to read thoroughly, to be well-versed in (through repeated reading)

Definition

熟读 (shúdú) means to read a text repeatedly until you know it well — emphasis is on mastery through rereading, not just finishing it once. Usually a transitive verb followed by the text (e.g. 熟读课文).

verb
to read thoroughlyto be well-versed in (through repeated reading)

Examples

  • 熟读。
    Tā shú dú le zhè bù jīng diǎn.
    He thoroughly read this classic.
  • 熟读，。
    Zhǐ yǒu shú dú, cái néng jì zhù zhè xiē nèi róng.
    Only by reading thoroughly can you remember this content.
  • 熟读。
    Lǎo shī yāo qiú wǒ men shú dú kè wén.
    The teacher required us to thoroughly read the text.

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.

熟shúthoroughly
读dúread

熟 “thoroughly” and 读 “read” combine to mean read thoroughly.

Characters in this word

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

熟 combines 孰 (cooked; ripe) with 灬 (fire), showing food cooked with fire.

Open 熟 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 讀; 读 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánto say
Sound part声符shēngfú
𧶠
𧶠𧶠讀dú
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 讀 is made of 言 ('to say') and 𧶠 (giving the sound); this description is about 讀, not 读.

Open 读 →

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