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路边 (lù biān) — roadside, side of the road

Definition

路边 (lù biān) names the side or edge of a road, not the road itself. Unlike 路上 ('on the road / en route'), it focuses on the area beside the road where you can stop or stand.

noun
roadsideside of the road

Examples

  • 路边。
    Wǒ xǐ huan zài lù biān sàn bù.
    I like to take a walk by the roadside.
  • 路边。
    lù biān Yǒu hěn duō xiǎo huā.
    There are many small flowers on the roadside.
  • 路边。
    Tā de zì xíng chē tíng zài lù biān.
    His bicycle is parked at the roadside.

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.

路lùroad
边biānside

Road and side combine to mean the edge along a road.

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 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 邊; 边 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辶Written in full as辵chuòwalking; movement
Sound part声符shēngfú
臱
臱mián邊biān(r)
Same sound today

The traditional form 邊 pairs 辶 (walking; movement) with the sound part 臱; the simplified 边 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the original parts.

Open 边 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 3Roads & Traffic

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