条条 (tiáo tiáo) — every (used with the classifier for long, thin…

Definition

A bound-form quantifier that pairs with the classifier 条 to mean 'every (long, thin thing)' — usually a road, river, or rule. Only appears directly before a noun with 条.

bound form

every (used with the classifier for long, thin objects; figurative:'every road/river/rule')

Examples

条条。
tiáo tiáo Dà lù tōng luó mǎ.
Every road leads to Rome.
条条。
tiáo tiáo Jiāng hé zuì zhōng liú rù dà hǎi.
Every river eventually flows into the ocean.
条条。
tiáo tiáo Guī zé dōu yào zūn shǒu.
Every rule must be followed.

Origin

Reduplicated word

构词法gòucífǎ

重叠chóngdiéReduplication

A syllable said twice — for affection, for softness, or simply because that is how the word is said.

条tiáostripe/road

条条 together mean each long thin thing, road, or rule.

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 條; 条 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

木木mù

Sound part声符shēngfú

攸

攸yōu條tiáo

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

The traditional form 條 pairs 木, a small branch or stick, with 攸, which shows a person warned by a hand holding a stick, as a sound part; 条 is a later shortened shape.

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