路
road; route; way
HSK level
- Pinyin
- lù
- Part of speech
- noun
- Level
- HSK 2
- Strokes
- 13
- Register
- neutral
- Measure word
- 条
Stroke order for 路
路 is written with 13 strokes. The animation replays automatically.
What does 路 mean?
路 (lù) means 'road,' 'route,' or 'way' in both literal and figurative senses.
Literally it covers any street or path you walk or drive on — 大路 (a main road), 小路 (a small path), 一条路 (one road, with measure word 条). It also names bus routes (一路 / 二路 公交车 = bus route 1, route 2) and appears in many street names (长安路 'Chang'an Road'). Figuratively, 路 is the way to do something or the path through life: 走自己的路 ('walk your own road'), 找工作的路 ('the road to finding a job').
Two useful pairings: 走路 (zǒu lù) means 'to walk' as a verb-object phrase; 路上 (lù shang) means 'on the way / during the trip.' Common collocation 问路 means 'ask for directions.'
Example sentences
这条路很长。
Zhè tiáo lù hěn cháng.
This road is very long.
neutral
我每天走路去学校。
Wǒ měi tiān zǒu lù qù xuéxiào.
I walk to school every day.
spoken
请问，去医院的路怎么走？
Qǐng wèn, qù yīyuàn de lù zěnme zǒu?
Excuse me, how do I get to the hospital?
spoken, polite
路上小心。
Lù shang xiǎoxīn.
Be careful on the way.
spoken
他不认识路。
Tā bú rènshi lù.
He doesn't know the way.
spoken
Common phrases with 路
Synonyms
马路 specifically means a street or main road wide enough for cars — what you cross at a crosswalk. 路 is the general word and can also mean a country path, a route, or a figurative way.
街 means 'street' as a place where people walk and shops line up — 上街 means 'go out shopping/strolling.' 路 is more about the road as a passage from A to B.
道路 is a slightly more formal/written compound meaning 'road' or 'roadway,' often in news or official text. 路 is the everyday spoken word.
Don't confuse 路 with
陆 (lù) means 'land' (as opposed to sea) and appears in 大陆 'mainland.' Same pinyin and tone as 路 but completely different character and meaning.
录 (lù) means 'to record' (as in 录音 'record audio'). Identical pronunciation but unrelated to roads.
略 looks similar (shares the 各 component) but means 'slightly' or 'omit.' Different pronunciation and meaning.
FAQ
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