领路 (lǐng lù) — to lead the way, to show the way | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A colloquial verb meaning 'to lead/show the way' physically on a route. Often used in travel or guided-walking contexts, and takes 给/为 + person to mark who is being led.

verb

to lead the wayto show the way

Examples

领路，。
Nǐ zhǐ yào lǐng lù, wǒ men jiù gēn zhe nǐ.
You just lead the way, and we'll follow you.
。
Tā gěi wǒ lǐng guò yí cì lù.
He once led the way for me.
领路。
Wǎn shàng tā huì wèi wǒ men lǐng lù.
In the evening, he will lead the way for us.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

领 means lead and 路 means way, so together they describe leading along the road.

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 領; 领 is its simplified writing.

令頁領

Meaning part形符xíngfú

頁頁yè

Sound part声符shēngfú

令

令lìng領lǐng

Same sound today

The traditional form 領 has 令 as a sound part and 頁 as a meaning part; the simplified 领 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

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.

Appears in

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