铺就 (pū jiù) — to pave (a road, path); to lay (a foundation)

Definition

Literary verb for 'to pave' or 'to lay' — used in writing to describe roads, paths, or foundations being established, more formal than everyday 铺. Often pairs with abstract subjects like 'success road' or 'cooperation foundation'.

verb
to pave (a road, path)to lay (a foundation)
Easily confused

Examples

  • 铺就。
    Zhèng fǔ tóu zī pū jiù le yì tiáo xīn de gāo sù gōng lù.
    The government invested in paving a new expressway.
  • 铺就。
    Qín fèn hé nǔ lì pū jiù le tā de chéng gōng zhī lù.
    Diligence and hard work paved the road to his success.
  • 铺就。
    Zhè zuò qiáo de jiàn chéng pū jiù le liǎng dì hé zuò de jī chǔ.
    The completion of this bridge laid the foundation for cooperation between the two places.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

铺pùlay
就jiùcomplete

铺 means to lay or spread and 就 adds completion, meaning to pave something finished.

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 鋪; 铺 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
金金jīngold; metal
Sound part声符shēngfú
甫
甫fǔ鋪pū
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 鋪 pairs 金 (gold; metal) with 甫 as a sound part; the simplified 铺 is a shorthand.

Open 铺 →

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

An older form paired 享, a temple, with 京, a tower, showing sacrifice at a high place; in 就 the temple part was dropped and a right part for going upward was added.

Open 就 →

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