中游

zhōngyóu

noun #32,840

Meanings

1 middle reaches (of a river)
2 middle level (of a ranking)
3 midstream (of an industry chain)

Characters

stream; to swim / drift

Examples

武汉位于长江中游。

Wǔhàn wèiyú Chángjiāng zhōngyóu.

Wuhan is on the middle reaches of the Yangtze.

他的成绩一直处于班里的中游。

Tā de chéngjī yìzhí chǔyú bān lǐ de zhōngyóu.

His grades have always been in the middle of the class.

石油产业链的中游主要是炼制和运输。

Shíyóu chǎnyèliàn de zhōngyóu zhǔyào shì liànzhì hé yùnshū.

The midstream of the oil industry chain is mainly refining and transport.

Tips

usage

Pairs with 上游 (upper reaches / upstream) and 下游 (lower reaches / downstream). The metaphor extends from rivers to (1) academic / sales rankings — 中游 = mid-tier, and (2) industrial value chains — 上游 raw materials, 中游 processing/manufacturing, 下游 retail.

Stroke Order

中 zhōng

游 yóu