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走向 (zǒu xiàng) — direction, trend (of development, river, etc.); (geology) strike (angle of inclination)

Definition

A noun for the 'direction something is heading' — used for trends, development, or the course of a river or road. Pairs with 方向 (a static orientation or bearing) but emphasizes movement and change over time.

noun
directiontrend (of development, river, etc.)(geology) strike (angle of inclination)

Examples

  • 走向。
    Wǒ men xū yào liǎo jiě shì chǎng de fā zhǎn zǒu xiàng.
    We need to understand the development trend of the market.
  • 走向。
    Zhè tiáo gōng lù de zǒu xiàng shì nán běi fāng xiàng.
    The direction of this highway is north-south.
  • 走向。
    Dì zhì xué jiā jì lù le yán céng de zǒu xiàng.
    The geologist recorded the strike of the rock layer.

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.

走zǒumovement
向xiàngdirection

走 means movement and 向 means direction, so the word gives the direction in which something moves.

Characters in this word

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

The original shape showed a running man, with a foot added later.

Open 走 →

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

向 originally drew 宀 (house) with 口 to show an echo in a place; later it was used for direction.

Open 向 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Directions5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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