平行线

平行線

píngxíngxiàn

noun #45,552

Measure Word

两条平行线 tiáo

Meanings

1 parallel lines (geometry)
2 (figurative) two things that never meet or intersect

Characters

level / parallel

Examples

两条平行线在同一平面内永远不相交。

Liǎng tiáo píngxíngxiàn zài tóng yī píngmiàn nèi yǒngyuǎn bù xiāngjiāo.

Two parallel lines in the same plane never intersect.

我们俩的人生像两条平行线，再也没有交集。

Wǒmen liǎ de rénshēng xiàng liǎng tiáo píngxíngxiàn, zài yě méi yǒu jiāojí.

Our two lives are like parallel lines — we no longer have anything in common.

Tips

usage

Standard geometry term but heavily used as a romantic / philosophical metaphor in song lyrics and writing: 我们是两条平行线 'we are two parallel lines' = we will never be together. The associated idiom 平行线永不相交 ('parallel lines never meet') is itself a popular Chinese trope for unrequited love or destined separation.

Stroke Order

平 píng

行 xíng

线 xiàn