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走运 (zǒu yùn) — to have good luck, to be lucky (colloquial)

Definition

Colloquial 'to be lucky / have good luck', usually about a streak of fortune. Compare 幸运, which is more formal and also used as an adjective ('a lucky person').

verb
to have good luckto be lucky (colloquial)

Examples

  • 走运，。
    Tā zuì jìn hěn zǒu yùn, mǎi cǎi piào zhòng jiǎng le.
    He's been very lucky lately; he won the lottery.
  • 走运，。
    Zhù nǐ zǒu yùn, kǎo shì yí qiè shùn lì.
    Wish you good luck; may your exams go smoothly.
  • ，。
    Tā zhè cì zǒu le dà yùn, shēng zhí jiā xīn le.
    He had great luck this time; he got promoted and a raise.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

走zǒuwalk
运yùnluck

走 walk and 运 luck together suggest luck coming to someone.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The original shape showed a running man, with a foot added later.

Open 走 →

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 運; 运 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辵辵chuòmotion
Sound part声符shēngfú
軍
軍jūn運yùn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 運 combines 辵, meaning motion, with 軍 to give the sound; the simplified 运 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the historical components.

Open 运 →
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