TongTong
Sign in

老规矩 (lǎo guī jǔ) — established rules, conventions, or practices (often implying tradition or routine)

Definition

老规矩 refers to long-standing customs or established practices (传统习惯), often with a sense of 'how things have always been done' — not formal written regulations. Similar to 习惯, but 习惯 is personal/habitual while 老规矩 is collective and traditional.

noun
established rulesconventionsor practices (often implying tradition or routine)

Examples

  • 老规矩。
    Zán men jiù àn lǎo guī jǔ bàn ba.
    Let's just follow the old rules and do it.
  • 老规矩，。
    Zhè shì gōng sī de lǎo guī jǔ, bù néng suí biàn gǎi.
    This is the company's established practice; it can't be changed casually.
  • 老规矩，。
    Àn zhào lǎo guī jǔ, guò nián yào huí jiā tuán yuán.
    According to tradition, you should go home for reunion during Chinese New Year.

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.

老lǎoold
规矩rules
规guīrule矩jǔrule
联合Coordinate

老 (old) describes 规矩 (rules), so it means long-standing conventions.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

The shape 老 combines 人 (man), 毛 (hair), and 匕 (cane), showing a man with long hair leaning on a cane.

Open 老 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 規; 规 is its simplified writing.

  • 夫夫fūhusband
  • 見見jiànsee

The simplified 规 is a shorthand; the traditional form 規 shows a cross-shaped compass in its early drawing, and its later form uses 夫 and 見.

Open 规 →

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

The shape of 矩 came from a picture of a man holding a carpenter's square.

Open 矩 →
Appears in
Abstract Concepts

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