铁道 (tiě dào) — railway, railroad | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

railwayrailroad

Measure word · 条

铁道。
Zhè tiáo tiě dào lián jiē le liǎng gè dà chéng shì.
This railway connects two big cities.
铁道。
tiě dào Shàng de liè chē měi tiān dōu yào jiǎn chá yí biàn.
Trains on the railway are inspected every day.
铁道。
Zuò tiě dào lǚ xíng kě yǐ xīn shǎng yán tú de fēng jǐng.
Traveling by railway lets you enjoy the scenery along the way.

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.

“铁” means iron and “道” means road, together naming a road made of iron rails.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 鐵; 铁 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

金金jīnmetal

Sound part声符shēngfú

𢧤

𢧤𢧤鐵tiě

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 鐵 pairs 金 (metal) with 𢧤 as a sound part; the simplified 铁 is a later shorthand.

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

行行xíngstreet

Sound part声符shēngfú

𩠐

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

Early 道 showed a street 行, a foot 止, and a part written 首 or 𩠐; the right part of 行 later disappeared.

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