trace to the source; seek historical roots
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
2 senses · 5 examplesverb
to go upstream to find the source of a river
Literal meaning, often used in geographical or hydrological contexts.
Tàn探
xiǎn险
duì队
yán沿
zhe着
hé河
liú流
xiàng向
shàng上
sù溯
yuán源
。
The expedition team traced the river upstream to its source.
Zhè这
tiáo条
xiǎo小
xī溪
de的
yuán源
tóu头
hěn很
nán难
sù溯
yuán源
。
It is difficult to trace the source of this small stream.
verb
to trace back to the origin; to seek historical roots
Figurative meaning, commonly used in academic, historical, or analytical contexts.
Zhuī追
běn本
sù溯
yuán源
，
zhè这
gè个
chuán传
tǒng统
yǐ已
yǒu有
qiān千
nián年
lì历
shǐ史
。
Tracing back to its roots, this tradition has a history of a thousand years.
Wèi为
le了
shí食
pǐn品
ān安
quán全
，
wǒ我
men们
jiàn建
lì立
le了
sù溯
yuán源
xì系
tǒng统
。
For food safety, we have established a traceability system.
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Xué学
zhě者
men们
duì对
zhè这
gè个
diǎn典
gù故
jìn进
xíng行
le了
sù溯
yuán源
yán研
jiū究
。
Scholars conducted research to trace the origin of this allusion.