航行 (háng xíng) — to sail (by ship); to fly (by aircraft); to nav… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

航行 covers both sailing and flying — it emphasizes a vehicle in motion over a route. Compare 飞行 (aircraft/birds only) and 航海 (seafaring only); 导航 is the act of giving/using directions, not the journey itself.

verb

to sail (by ship)to fly (by aircraft)to navigate (general)

Examples

航行。
Zhè sōu huò lún zhèng zài tài píng yáng shàng háng xíng.
This cargo ship is sailing across the Pacific Ocean.
航行。
Háng bān yīn tiān qì è liè wú fǎ háng xíng.
The flight cannot fly due to bad weather.
航行。
Wèi xīng dǎo háng xì tǒng wèi háng xíng tí gōng le jīng què xìn xī.
The satellite navigation system provides precise information for navigation.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

航hángnavigate

“航” and “行” both refer to moving or navigating, together expressing sailing or flying along a route.

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.

舟亢航

Meaning part形符xíngfú

舟舟zhōuboat

Sound part声符shēngfú

亢

亢kàng航háng

Same sound today

航 shows a boat with 舟, and 亢 gives the character its sound.

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

彳亍行

彳彳chì
亍亍chù

The shape of 行 originally showed a street intersection, even on both sides. Later it became uneven, with 彳 on the left and 亍 on the right.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 HSK 2.0 Level 6 Air Travel Boats & Water Travel

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