巡礼 (xún lǐ) — to make a pilgrimage; to tour, to go sightseeing | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

巡礼 (xún lǐ) literally means 'to make a pilgrimage' — visiting places associated with someone or something you admire (a musician's career sites, a historical route). Colloquially also used for a sightseeing tour along such a route.

verb

to make a pilgrimageto tourto go sightseeing

Examples

。
Tā měi nián dōu qù mài jiā xún yí cì lǐ.
He goes on a pilgrimage to Mecca every year.
巡礼。
Xǔ duō yóu kè lái zhè zuò chéng shì xún lǐ.
Many tourists come to this city to tour.
巡礼。
Tā men jì huà yán zhe sī chóu zhī lù xún lǐ.
They plan to tour along the Silk Road.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

巡 means to go around, and 礼 refers to rites, giving the idea of touring sacred places.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

辵辵chuòwalk

Sound part声符shēngfú

川

川chuān巡xún

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

巡 pairs 辵, a walking part, with 川 as a sound part.

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 禮; 礼 is its simplified writing.

礻豊禮

Meaning part形符xíngfú

礻Written in full as示shìaltar

Sound part声符shēngfú

豊

豊lǐ禮lǐ

Same sound today

The traditional form 禮 pairs 礻 (altar) with 豊, a sound part, for performing rites at the altar; the simplified 礼 is a later shorthand.

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