录 (lù): to carve wood, diary, record
录 (lù) is a Chinese character meaning “to carve wood.” Classified as HSK Level 5 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 彐 (structural) and 氺 (structural). It ranks #919 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically pictographic, 录 a brush used to record stories. Its radical form 彐 (snout) appears in many related characters such as 当 (dāng, (onom.) dong), 归 (guī, to return).
Definitions
- to carve wood
- diary
- record
Etymology & Origin
pictographicA brush used to record stories
Decomposition: ⿱彐氺 (layout: top-bottom)
Stroke Order
Practice writing 录 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 录
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 记录verb/noun | jì lù | to record | 5 |
| 录像verb/noun | lù xiàng | to videotape | 6 |
| 纪录noun | jì lù | variant of 記錄|记录[ji4 lu4] (but in Taiwan, not for the verb sense "to record") | 5 |
| 录音verb/noun | lù yīn | to record sound | 5 |
| 录取verb | lù qǔ | to accept an applicant (prospective student, employee etc) who passes an entrance exam | 5 |
| 目录noun | mù lù | catalog | 6 |
| 登录verb | dēng lù | to register | 5 |
| 录制verb | lù zhì | to record (video or audio) | 6 |
| 纪录片noun | jì lù piàn | newsreel | 5 |
| 录用verb | lù yòng | to hire (an employee) | 6 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 录像带 | lù xiàng dài | videotape |
| 备忘录 | bèi wàng lù | memorandum |
| 录音带 | lù yīn dài | audio tape |
| 录音机 | lù yīn jī | (tape) recording machine |
| 笔录 | bǐ lù | to put down in writing |
| 录像机 | lù xiàng jī | video recorder |
| 启示录 | qǐ shì lù | the Revelation of St John the divine |
| 录音室 | lù yīn shì | recording studio |
| 记录片 | jì lù piàn | variant of 紀錄片|纪录片[ji4 lu4 pian4] |
| 回忆录 | huí yì lù | memoir |
| 录音棚 | lù yīn péng | recording studio |
| 通讯录 | tōng xùn lù | address book |
| 收录 | shōu lù | to include (in a collection) |
| 录影 | lù yǐng | to videotape |
| 录入 | lù rù | to input (computer) |
录 appears in 100 compound words: 23 as the first character, 59 as the last, and 18 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 录 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (2)
Example Sentences
了解录字的来源，有助于理解中国文化。
le xiè lù zì de lái yuán , yǒu zhù yú lǐ xiè zhōng guó wén huā .
Understanding the origin of the character "录" helps to comprehend Chinese culture.
...Generali 2025财年业绩:创纪录利润,拟派发2.9欧元股息
. . . G e n e r a l i 2 0 2 5 cái nián yè jì : chuàng jì lù lì rùn , nǐ pài fā 2 . 9 ōu yuán gǔ xī
... Generali's fiscal year 2025 results: record profit, proposed dividend of 2.9 euros
...nca Generali第四季度业绩创纪录但股价下跌
. . . n c a G e n e r a l i dì sì jì dù yè jì chuàng jì lù dàn gǔ jià xià diē
... nca Generali posted record fourth-quarter results, but shares fell
“贵州烟火气·黔味中国年”天眼纪录·回家|开往春天..
guì zhōu yān huǒ qì 黔 wèi zhōng guó nián tiān yǎn jì lù huí jiā kāi wǎng chūn tiān . .
"Guizhou Fireworks and Qianwei Chinese Year" Tianyan Record Home|Drive to Spring:
在僵尸启示录的事件中你会怎么做？
Zài jiāngshī Qǐshìlù de shìjiàn zhōng nǐ huì zěnme zuò?
What would you do in the event of a zombie apocalypse?
她允许了我对她的访问纪录。
Tā yǔnxǔ le wǒ duì tā de fǎngwèn jìlù.
She gave me access to her records.
我的录像机可以拍高清视频。
Wǒ de lùxiàngjī kěyǐ pāi gāoqīng shìpín.
My camera can shoot high-definition video.
她被哈佛大学录取了。
Tā bèi Hāfó Dàxué lùqǔ le.
She was accepted to Harvard.
我们调查了他的犯规记录。
Wǒmen diàochá le tā de fànguī jìlù.
We have investigated his criminal record.
她打破了世界纪录。
Tā dǎpò le shìjièjìlù.
She broke the world record.
Character Family
彐 Radical Family — Characters sharing the snout radical
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 录 (lù) mean in Chinese?
How many strokes does 录 have?
What is the radical of 录?
What are the components of 录?
What are common words containing 录?
What characters sound the same as 录 (lù)?
Is 录 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 录 with real-time feedback
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