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水准 (shuǐ zhǔn) — level, standard (of quality, achievement, etc.); level (surveying)

Definition

水准 is a more formal word for 'level / standard' than the everyday 水平. In surveying it means the literal ground level, where 基准 is the reference datum used for measurement.

noun
levelstandard (of quality, achievement, etc.)level (surveying)

Examples

  • 水准。
    Tā de zhōng wén shuǐ zhǔn hěn gāo.
    His Chinese level is very high.
  • 水准。
    Zhè cì kǎo shì de shuǐ zhǔn bǐ qù nián gāo le hěn duō.
    The level of this exam is much higher than last year.
  • 水准，。
    Gōng chéng shī cè liáng le dì miàn shuǐ zhǔn, què bǎo shī gōng ān quán.
    The engineer measured the ground level to ensure construction safety.

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.

水shuǐwater
准zhǔnlevel

水 (“water”) and 准 (“level”) together name a standard or level.

Characters in this word

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

水 is a simple drawing of water flowing.

Open 水 →

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 準; 准 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
水水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
隼
隼sǔn準zhǔn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 準, not 准, pairs 水 (water) with 隼 as a sound part; the evidence describes it as 'water level'.

Open 准 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Abstract Concepts

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.