经线

經線

jīngxiàn

noun #82,726

Measure Word

一条经线 tiáo

Meanings

1 line of longitude; meridian
2 warp (lengthwise threads on a loom)

Characters

warp; longitude

Examples

HSK 7-9

所有经线都在南北两极相交。

Suǒyǒu jīngxiàn dōu zài nánběi liǎngjí xiāngjiāo.

All lines of longitude meet at the North and South Poles.

HSK 7-9

织布时，纬线在经线之间来回穿梭。

Zhībù shí, wěixiàn zài jīngxiàn zhījiān láihuí chuānsuō.

When weaving, the weft passes back and forth between the warp threads.

HSK 7-9

北京时间采用的是东经一百二十度经线的时间。

Běijīng shíjiān cǎiyòng de shì dōngjīng yìbǎi èrshí dù jīngxiàn de shíjiān.

Beijing time is the time along the meridian at 120 degrees east.

Tips

memory

经 first meant the lengthwise warp threads on a loom (note the silk radical) and 纬 the crosswise weft. Map-makers borrowed the pair for the grid on the globe: 经线 run north to south and measure 经度, longitude; 纬线 run east to west and measure 纬度, latitude. Together they are 经纬.

usage

The zero-degree line through Greenwich is the 本初子午线, the prime meridian; 子午线 is another word for any meridian.

Stroke Order

经 jīng

线 xiàn