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路线 (lù xiàn) — route; itinerary (physical path or planned journey); (political) line; ideological course

Definition

路线 is a planned or designated route (bus route, travel itinerary), also used in political/ideological 'line'. 路 is the physical road itself; 行程 is the broader itinerary including activities.

noun
routeitinerary (physical path or planned journey)(political) lineideological course
Measure word · 条

Examples

  • 路线。
    Wǒ měi tiān zuò zhè lù xiàn gōng gòng qì chē shàng bān.
    I take this bus route to work every day.
  • 路线。
    Lǚ xíng shè ān pái le yì tiáo hěn shòu huān yíng de lǚ yóu lù xiàn.
    The travel agency arranged a very popular travel route.
  • 路线。
    Tā men jiān chí yuán lái de zhèng zhì lù xiàn bú dòng yáo.
    They firmly adhere to the original political line without wavering.

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.

路lùroad
线xiànline

“路” (road) and “线” (line) combine into a road-line, meaning a route or planned course.

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
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 →

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 線; 线 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糹Written in full as糸mì
Sound part声符shēngfú
泉
泉quán線xiàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 線 uses 糹 (silk/thread) to show the meaning and 泉 to suggest the sound; the simplified 线 is a later shorthand.

Open 线 →
Appears in
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