碌 (liù) — busy (in 忙碌, 劳碌, etc., pronounced lù); mediocre, undistinguished (in 庸碌, 碌碌无为, etc., pronounced lù)
Definition
碌 is a bound form — it never stands alone. In 忙碌 and 劳碌 it means 'busy'; in 庸碌 and 碌碌无为 it means 'mediocre, unremarkable'.
bound form
busy (in 忙碌, 劳碌, etc., pronounced lù)mediocreundistinguished (in 庸碌, 碌碌无为, etc., pronounced lù)
Easily confused
Examples
- ，。Tā zhěng tiān máng liù, méi yǒu shí jiān xiū xi.He is busy all day and has no time to rest.
- 碌，。Yí gè yōng liù de rén, zài nǔ lì yě hěn nán chéng gōng.A mediocre person, no matter how hard they try, will find it difficult to succeed.
- ，。Tā yì shēng láo liù, zuì hòu què yì wú suǒ yǒu.He labored all his life but ended up with nothing.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.
Sound part声符shēngfú
彔
彔lù碌lù
Same sound today
碌 is made of 石 (stone) and 彔, with 彔 giving the sound.
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