露 (lù): dew

Meanings

1 dew
2 syrup; nectar (drink extract)
3 to reveal; to show; to expose
4 outdoors; in the open

Characters

露

lù

dew; to reveal (formal/written)

Examples

早晨草地上有很多露水。

Zǎochen cǎodì shàng yǒu hěn duō lùshuǐ.

There is a lot of dew on the grass in the morning.

丑闻终于被揭露了。

Chǒuwén zhōngyú bèi jiēlù le.

The scandal was finally exposed.

她的衣服露出了肩膀。

Tā de yīfu lù chū le jiānbǎng.

Her clothes exposed her shoulders.

Tips

usage

露 is the formal/written reading and covers ALL the meanings: dew (露水), expose (暴露), reveal (揭露), and the sweet-extract sense (甘露, 杏仁露). The colloquial lòu reading is reserved for a small set of spoken idioms about showing oneself off.

memory

Picture morning dew on the road: 雨 (rain) over 路 (road). The phonetic 路 gives the sound exactly; the meaning extends from visible moisture to anything visible — extract, drink, exposure.

Components

radical

雨 yǔ

rain

Top rain radical — the indexing radical and meaning anchor. Dew condenses overnight from atmospheric moisture, so the rain canopy fits. Many weather characters share this top: 雪 (snow), 雷 (thunder), 霜 (frost), 雾 (fog) — all moisture from the sky.

phonetic

路 lù

road; path

Bottom 路 gives an exact phonetic match for the lù reading. The imagery fits beautifully: dew on the road, the visible exposure along a path. The 13-stroke 路 sits unmodified beneath 雨, a clean compound with the phonetic carrying its full standalone shape.