弯路 (wān lù) — winding road; crooked path; (figurative) mistake; wrong path; detour (in life)

Definition

Literally 'crooked road'; figuratively 'a detour or wrong path' in life, meaning time wasted on mistakes. 走弯路 means to learn by trial and error, contrasted with 直路 (the straight path / doing it right).

noun
winding roadcrooked path(figurative) mistakewrong pathdetour (in life)
Measure word · 条

Examples

  • 弯路，。
    Zhè tiáo shān lù yǒu hěn duō wān lù, kāi chē yào xiǎo xīn.
    This mountain road has many winding sections; drive carefully.
  • 弯路，。
    Tā nián qīng de shí hou zǒu le bù shǎo wān lù, dàn xiàn zài hěn chéng gōng.
    He made many mistakes when he was young, but now he is very successful.
  • ，。
    Wǒ xī wàng nǐ néng shǎo zǒu wān lù, zhí jiē zhǎo dào shì hé zì jǐ de lù.
    I hope you can avoid unnecessary detours and directly find a path that suits you.

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.

弯wāncrooked
路lùroad

A 弯 road is a winding path, so a detour or mistake.

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 彎; 弯 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
弓弓gōngbow
Sound part声符shēngfú
䜌
䜌䜌彎wān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 彎 pairs 弓 (bow) with 䜌 as a sound part; the simplified 弯 is a later shorthand.

Open 弯 →

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 →

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