守法 (shǒu fǎ) — to abide by the law, to obey the law | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Verb-object phrase meaning 'to abide by the law' — 守 = guard/keep, 法 = law. Pairs naturally with 犯法 ('to break the law') as its opposite.

verb

to abide by the lawto obey the law

Examples

。
Tā cóng lái méi shǒu guò yí cì fǎ.
He has never once abided by the law.
守法。
Kāi chē shí yí dìng yào shǒu fǎ.
You must abide by the law when driving.
，守法。
Wèi le dà jiā de ān quán, wǒ men měi gè rén dōu yào shǒu fǎ.
For everyone's safety, each of us must abide by the law.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

守 means keep/obey, and 法 means law, so together they describe keeping the law.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

宀寸守

宀宀miánroof; building
寸寸cùnhand

守 pairs 宀, a roof or building, with 寸, a hand, to show a hand guarding a place.

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

氵Written in full as水shuǐwater

廌廌zhìa type of antelope or caprid

Sound part声符shēngfú

盍

盍hé法fǎ

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

法's older form combined 氵 (water) and 廌 (a type of antelope or caprid), with 盍 as a sound part; later 廌 was dropped.

Appears in

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