The Chinese word radical “walk”

In ancient times, before the various types of vehicles were invented, people used to walk on foot to get to places (unless they own a beast of burden). In China, when there was a wedding or a funeral, friends and relatives from other villages might walk days in order to attend. Therefore, it was customary for a well-to-do host to board and feed them for several days.

Now that we have cars to ride in, should you still need to walk somewhere for some reason, you could say in jest that you are taking the Route 11 bus, i.e. “坐11路公车 (zuò 11 lù gōngchē), because your two legs form the shape of the number 11.

The Chinese word for walking is 走 (zǒu). This character also serves as a radical in a number of other characters, such as the following.

起 (qǐ) is to rise.

他每天7点起床.
Tā měitiān qī diǎn qǐchuáng.
He gets up at 7 every day.

趟 (tāng) in the first tone is a verb that means to wade through (e.g. a small stream).

趟 (tàng) in the forth tone is a measure of trips, such as in

我去那儿一趟, 看看发生了什么事.
Wǒ qù nà’er yī tàng, kàn kàn fāshēngle shénme shì.
I will make a trip there to see what’s going on.

趣 (qù) means interest.

这很有趣.
Zhè hěn yǒuqù.
This is interesting.

越 (yuè) is to cross or pass over. The phrase 翻山越岭 (fān shānyuè lǐng) means to climb over the mountains.

趁 (chèn) is to take advantage of a situation or opportunity.

趁你还年轻, 努力工作.
Chèn nǐ hái niánqīng, nǔlì gōngzuò.
Work hard while you are still young.

超 (chāo) is to overtake or surpass. 超速行驶 (chāosù xíngshǐ) means speeding.

赶 (gǎn) has multiple meanings. 赶快 (gǎnkuài) means to hurry up. 赶走 (gǎn zǒu) is to drive away. 赶上 (gǎn shàng) means to catch up.

赴 (fù) means to go somewhere or to attend some meeting or event. 赴约 (fùyuē) is to keep an appointment.

徒 (tú) as an adverb means only or in vain. 徒步 (túbù) means to walk on foot. 学徒 (xuétú) is an apprentice.

There are three other word radicals that are associated with walking. 廴 (yǐn) is a long walk. 辶 (chuò) means to stop and go. It is the same as 辵 (chuò), which appears only in ancient scripts.

Please do not confuse 廴 (yǐn) with 辶(chuò). These two radicals are not interchangeable.

The following words contain the 廴 (yǐn) radical, with the left side extending past the bottom stroke:

建 (jiàn) is to establish or to construct.

廷 (íng) is a court of a monarchical government. 庭院 (tíngyuàn) is a courtyard.

延 (yán) is to extend or delay.

Notice how 廷 (íng) and 延 (yán) look very similar to each other? Yes, one little stroke can make a world of difference in meaning.

The following words use the 辶(chuò) radical, which features a tick at the top.

运 (yùn) could mean transportation, as in 运输 (yùnshū), or fate, as in 命运 (mìngyùn).

迷 (mí) means to be confused, such as in 迷糊 (míhú). 迷路 (mílù) is to get lost. 迷信 (míxìn) is superstition or being superstitious.

送 (sòng) is to give to, to deliver or to see someone off.

逆 (nì) means adverse or inverse.

在逆境中我们应该有勇气.
Zài nìjìng zhōng wǒmen yīnggāi yǒu yǒngqì.
In adversity we should have courage.