Meaning of 流传
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to spread; to circulate; to hand down
How to use 流传
流传 is used for stories, legends, songs, customs, and sayings that spread widely or pass down through generations. It often appears with 下来 or 至今. Example: 这个故事流传了几百年。(Zhège gùshi liúchuánle jǐ bǎi nián.) This story has been handed down for hundreds of years.
流 (liú) means to flow like water, and 传 (chuán) means to pass on. Picture a story flowing like a river and being passed from person to person, and you have 流传 (liúchuán): to spread or be handed down.
Common mistake: Learners often use 流传 for spreading diseases or fashions, where 流行 (liúxíng) or 传播 (chuánbō) is more natural. Also note 传 here is chuán, not zhuàn as in 传记 (zhuànjì, biography).
流传 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
流 liú · to flow · 10 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
传 chuán · to pass on · 6 strokes
- 1
- 2
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- 4
- 5
- 6
Related words
Words that share a character with 流传.
| 流行 | liúxíng | (of a contagious disease etc) to spread; to propagate; (of a style of clothing, song etc) |
| 流利 | liúlì | fluent |
| 交流 | jiāoliú | to exchange; exchange |
| 传说 | chuánshuō | legend; folk tale; to repeat from mouth to mouth; they say that... |
| 宣传 | xuānchuán | to disseminate; to give publicity to |
| 传播 | chuánbō | to disseminate; to propagate; to spread |
| 传来 | chuánlái | (of a sound) to come through; to be heard |
| 传统 | chuántǒng | tradition; traditional |
| 遗传 | yíchuán | heredity; to inherit (a trait) |
| 潮流 | cháoliú | tide; current |
| 一流 | yīliú | top quality; front ranking |
| 传达 | chuándá | to pass on; to convey |
Questions about 流传
What does 流传 mean?
流传 (liúchuán) means "to spread; to circulate; to hand down" and is used as a verb.
How do you write 流传?
流传 is made of 2 characters: 流 (10 strokes), 传 (6 strokes). That is 16 strokes in total.
Is 流传 an HSK word?
Yes. 流传 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 流传 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 流传 is written 流傳.
What is the difference between 流传 and 传播?
流传 focuses on something spreading naturally among people or over time, like legends or folk songs. 传播 (chuánbō) is broader and more active, used for information, ideas, diseases, and media spreading.
Can 流传 take an object?
Usually it does not take a direct object. The thing that spreads is the subject, as in 民间流传着一个传说 (mínjiān liúchuánzhe yí ge chuánshuō), a legend circulates among the people.