单线 (dān xiàn) — single-line route, one-way route | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A 'single-line route' — a road, railway, or communication channel that only allows traffic in one direction at a time, so vehicles or signals cannot pass side by side or in both ways.

noun

single-line routeone-way route

Measure word · 条

Examples

单线，。
Zhè tiáo lù shì yì tiáo dān xiàn, bù néng bìng pái xíng shǐ.
This road is a single-lane road; cars cannot drive side by side.
单线，。
Zhè shì yì tiáo dān xiàn tiě lù, liè chē xū yào děng dài huì chē.
This is a single-line railway; trains need to wait for passing.
单线。
Zhè ge dān xiàn xì tǒng zhī zhī chí dān xiàng tōng xìn.
This single-line system only supports one-way communication.

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.

单 (single) and 线 (line) combine to mean a one-line route.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 單; 单 is its simplified writing.

The form 單 originally pictured a Y-shaped wooden stick with two stones on top.

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.

糹泉線

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.

Appears in

Roads & Traffic

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