道 (dào) — (noun) road, path; principle, morality; method, skill; the Dao (of Daoism); (classifier) for long thin things, barriers, courses of a meal, steps of a process, exam questions, etc.
Definition
At HSK 4, 道 most commonly means 'road/path' (counted with 条) or a 'method/principle'. In philosophical contexts it names the Dao of Daoism. As a classifier it counts long thin things, courses of a meal, and steps of a process.
noun
roadpathprinciplemoralitymethodskillthe Dao (of Daoism)
classifier
for long thin thingsbarrierscourses of a mealsteps of a processexam questionsetc.
Measure word · 条, 股
Examples
- 道，。Zhè tiáo dào hěn zhǎi, zhǐ néng zǒu yí gè rén.This path is very narrow—only one person can walk.
- 。Tā shuō de dào lǐ wǒ bú tài dǒng.I don't really understand the reasoning he talked about.
- 道。Zhè shì jīn tiān de dì yī dào cài.This is the first dish of today.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.
Early 道 showed a street 行, a foot 止, and a part written 首 or 𩠐; the right part of 行 later disappeared.
Appears in
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