铁路 (tiě lù) — railroad; railway | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

铁路 refers to the railway system or tracks themselves, not the train. Compare 高铁 (high-speed rail) and 列车 (the train that runs on it).

noun

railroadrailway

Measure word · 条

Examples

铁路。
Zhè tiáo tiě lù jīng guò hěn duō chéng shì.
This railway passes through many cities.
铁路。
Wǒ zuò tiě lù qù lǚ xíng.
I take the railway to travel.
铁路。
Zhōng guó de tiě lù fā zhǎn dé hěn kuài.
China's railways are developing very quickly.

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.

The 铁 iron and 路 road combine to name a railway.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 鐵; 铁 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

金金jīnmetal

Sound part声符shēngfú

𢧤

𢧤𢧤鐵tiě

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 鐵 pairs 金 (metal) with 𢧤 as a sound part; the simplified 铁 is a later shorthand.

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

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.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 5 Trains & Transit

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