TongTong
Sign in

高速公路 (gāo sù gōng lù) — expressway; highway

Definition

noun
expresswayhighway
Measure word · 条

Examples

  • 高速公路。
    Wǒ men kāi chē shàng le gāo sù gōng lù.
    We drove onto the expressway.
  • 高速公路，。
    Zhè tiáo gāo sù gōng lù hěn cháng, yǒu yì bǎi gōng lǐ.
    This expressway is very long, about a hundred kilometers.
  • 高速公路。
    Zài gāo sù gōng lù shàng kāi chē yào xiǎo xīn.
    Be careful when driving on the expressway.

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.

高速high speed
高gāohigh速sùspeed
偏正Modifier + head
公路public road
公gōngpublic路lùroad
偏正Modifier + head

“高速” gives high speed and “公路” a road, together meaning an expressway.

Characters in this word

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

高 was drawn as a tall building.

Open 高 →

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
辵辵chuò
Sound part声符shēngfú
束
束shù速sù
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

速 pairs 辵, the walking part, with 束, which is used for its sound; the walking part fits the meaning of moving fast.

Open 速 →

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

One theory sees 公 as a picture of a wide-mouthed, round-bottomed jar.

Open 公 →

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 →
Appears in
Roads & Traffic

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.