TongTong
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路上 (lù shang) — on the road; en route

Definition

Means 'on the road / on the way' — it's about being mid-journey, not the road itself. Contrast with 路 (the road as a thing) and 路边 (the side of the road).

noun
on the roaden route

Examples

  • 路上。
    Wǒ měi tiān lù shang zǒu huí jiā.
    I walk home on the road every day.
  • 路上。
    lù shang Yǒu hěn duō chē.
    There are many cars on the road.
  • 路上。
    lù shang Màn màn zǒu.
    Walk slowly on the road.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

路lùroad
上shàngon

“路” means road, and “上” gives the sense of being on it, so the word means on the road or the road surface.

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.

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 →

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

上 is drawn as a short horizontal line placed above a longer arc, marking a position above that arc.

Open 上 →
Appears in
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