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规律 (guī lǜ) — (noun) regular pattern; law (of nature or society); rhythm; (adjective) regular; orderly; rhythmic

Definition

规律 covers two senses: a natural/social law or pattern (e.g. 自然规律), and 'regular / orderly' (e.g. 作息规律). 规则 is for human-made rules; 节奏 is rhythm/pace; 定律 is a confirmed scientific law.

noun
regular patternlaw (of nature or society)rhythm
adjective
regularorderlyrhythmic

Examples

  • 。
    Dì qiú rào zhe tài yáng zhuǎn shì zì rán guī lǜ.
    The Earth revolving around the sun is a law of nature.
  • 规律，。
    Tā de zuò xī hěn guī lǜ, měi tiān shí diǎn shuì jiào.
    His daily schedule is very regular — he goes to sleep at ten every day.
  • 规律。
    Kē xué jiā men fā xiàn le qì hòu biàn huà de guī lǜ.
    Scientists have discovered the patterns of climate change.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

规guīrule
律lǜlaw

规 means rule and 律 means law, together indicating a regular pattern or law.

Characters in this word

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 →

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
彳彳chì
Sound part声符shēngfú
聿
聿yù律lǜ
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

律 puts 彳 beside 聿: 彳 is the part tied to the meaning, and 聿 is the part tied to the sound.

Open 律 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5HSK 2.0 Level 5Abstract ConceptsScience (General)

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