下游

xiàyóu

noun HSK 7-9 #19,799

Meanings

1 lower reaches (of a river)
2 downstream

Characters

to flow; to swim

Literally 'lower flow' — the part of a river closer to the sea. The opposite of 上游.

Examples

长江下游地区很发达。

Chángjiāng xiàyóu dìqū hěn fādá.

The lower Yangtze region is very developed.

污染影响了下游的村庄。

Wūrǎn yǐngxiǎng le xiàyóu de cūnzhuāng.

The pollution affected the downstream villages.

这家工厂是产业链的下游企业。

Zhèjiā gōngchǎng shì chǎnyè liàn de xiàyóu qǐyè.

This factory is a downstream company in the supply chain.

Tips

usage

Like 上游, 下游 is widely used figuratively: 下游企业 (downstream companies) process or sell finished products, while 成绩下游 means near the bottom of the class rankings.

Stroke Order

下 xià

游 yóu