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线路 (xiàn lù) — (electricity) line, circuit, wire; (transport) route, line, track

Definition

线路 is a technical/system 'line' — a circuit, wire, or transit route built and maintained as infrastructure. Unlike 路 (a physical road) or 路线 (a planned path or ideological course), 线路 refers to the system itself.

noun
(electricity) linecircuitwire(transport) routelinetrack
Measure word · 条

Examples

  • 。
    Qǐng jiǎn chá zhè tiáo diàn huà xiàn lù.
    Please check this phone line.
  • 线路。
    Dì tiě xiàn lù yǐ jīng kāi shǐ shǐ yòng le.
    The subway line has already started operating.
  • 线路，。
    Xiǎo xīn zhè tiáo xiàn lù, hěn wēi xiǎn.
    Be careful with this line — it's very dangerous.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

线xiànline
路lùroute

线 (line) and 路 (route) combine to refer to a line or route, such as a circuit or track.

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 線; 线 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糹Written in full as糸mì
Sound part声符shēngfú
泉
泉quán線xiàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 線 uses 糹 (silk/thread) to show the meaning and 泉 to suggest the sound; the simplified 线 is a later shorthand.

Open 线 →

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 →
Appears in
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