Meaning of 途中
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- en route
How to use 途中
途中 usually follows a phrase naming the trip, often with 在 in front: 在去北京的途中 means on the way to Beijing. It is a bit more formal and written than 路上 (lùshang). Example: 我在回家途中遇到了老师。(Wǒ zài huí jiā túzhōng yùdào le lǎoshī.) I ran into my teacher on my way home.
途 (tú) means road or way, and 中 (zhōng) means middle. Being in the middle of the road is being en route.
Common mistake: Learners often write 途 as 涂 (tú, to smear), which sounds the same but has the water radical instead of the walking radical 辶. Also, 途中 cannot stand alone as a verb, so say 在旅行途中 rather than 我途中.
途中 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.
途 tú · way · 10 strokes
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- 10
中 zhōng · within · 4 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 途中.
| 中国 | Zhōngguó | China |
| 中间 | zhōngjiān | the middle; the inside; in the middle; within; between; among |
| 中午 | zhōngwǔ | noon; midday |
| 中学 | zhōngxué | middle school |
| 中文 | Zhōngwén | Chinese language |
| 中学生 | zhōngxuéshēng | middle-school student; high school student |
| 其中 | qízhōng | among; in |
| 中心 | zhōngxīn | center; heart; core |
| 高中 | gāozhōng | senior high school (abbr. for 高級中學|高级中学[gao1 ji2 zhong1 xue2]) |
| 心中 | xīnzhōng | central point; in one's thoughts |
| 中年 | zhōngnián | middle age |
| 中餐 | zhōngcān | lunch; Chinese meal; Chinese food |
Questions about 途中
What does 途中 mean?
途中 (túzhōng) means "en route" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 途中?
途中 is made of 2 characters: 途 (10 strokes), 中 (4 strokes). That is 14 strokes in total.
Is 途中 an HSK word?
Yes. 途中 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 途中 and 路上?
Both mean on the way. 路上 (lùshang) is more casual and common in speech, while 途中 sounds more formal and fits writing, news, and announcements.
Can 途中 describe something other than a physical journey?
Yes, it can be used figuratively for a process, as in 在学习的途中 (in the course of studying). A related word is 中途 (zhōngtú), which means halfway or partway through, often about stopping or quitting.