潦

lǎo / liáo
noun #81,841

Meanings

  1. 1 floodwater; rainwater pooling on the ground

Examples

HSK 7-9
雨后,院子里积了潦水。
Yǔ hòu, yuànzi lǐ jī le lǎoshuǐ.
After the rain, pooled water collected in the courtyard.
HSK 7-9
潦水尽而寒潭清。
Lǎoshuǐ jìn ér hántán qīng.
The pooled rainwater drained away and the cold pool turned clear.

Tips

history
This 潦 means rainwater pooling on the ground. It appears in the famous opening of the Tang preface 滕王阁序: 潦水 drying up and the pool turning clear. Rare in everyday speech, common in classical texts.

Components

radical
氵 shuǐ
water (left-side form)
Left-side water radical 氵, the three-drop form of 水. The original sense of the character is about water (rain, flooding); the liáo 'careless' sense is a borrowed phonetic use.
phonetic
尞 liáo
to burn (ceremonial fire)
Right side 尞 supplies the sound. The same phonetic gives 燎 (to set ablaze) and 瞭 (to look out).

Stroke Order

潦 lǎo