长河 (cháng hé) — (figurative) long river of time or history; endless flow; (literal) long river

Definition

A literary noun for a long river, almost always used figuratively to mean the long, flowing course of history or time (as in 历史的长河 'the long river of history').

noun
(figurative) long river of time or historyendless flow(literal) long river
Measure word · 条

Examples

  • 长河，。
    Lì shǐ de cháng hé bēn liú bù xī, jiàn zhèng le duō shǎo xīng shuāi.
    The long river of history flows endlessly, witnessing so many rises and falls.
  • 长河，。
    Zài shí jiān de cháng hé zhōng, gè rén de shēng mìng zhǐ shì duǎn zàn de yí shùn.
    In the long river of time, an individual's life is but a brief moment.
  • 长河，。
    Zhè tiáo cháng hé wān yán chuān guò shān gǔ, zī yǎng le liǎng àn de tǔ dì.
    This long river winds through the valley, nourishing the land on both banks.

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.

长chánglong
河hériver

长 is long, and 河 is river, giving a long river, often of time.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 長; 长 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 長 pictures an old man with long hair. The simplified 长 is a later shorthand, so its strokes do not show that original picture.

Open 长 →

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
水水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
何
何hé河hé
Same sound today

河 pairs 水 (water) with 何, which gives the sound. The 水 part marks it as a word for a river.

Open 河 →

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