熟路 (shú lù) — familiar route, beaten track

Definition

noun
familiar routebeaten track
Measure word · 条

Examples

  • 熟路，。
    Tā měi tiān dōu zǒu zhè tiáo shú lù, suǒ yǐ kāi dé hěn kuài.
    He takes this familiar route every day, so he drives fast.
  • 熟路，。
    Zhè tiáo shú lù suī rán piān pì, dàn shì fēng jǐng hěn měi.
    Although this beaten track is remote, the scenery is beautiful.
  • 熟路，。
    Wǒ men zǒu de shì shú lù, bú huì mí lù de.
    We're taking a familiar route; we won't get lost.

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shúfamiliar
路lùroad

“熟” means familiar and “路” means road, so the word describes a route one knows well.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
足足zú
Sound part声符shēngfú
各
各gè路lù
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

路 combines 足, a foot, with 各, which supplies the sound.

Open 路 →

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