随大溜
suídàliū · HSK 7
to follow the crowd; going with the tide
🐑 随 follow + 大 big + 溜 current = follow the big current, go with the crowd
溜 (liū) is a flowing stream or slipping-along motion, so 随大溜 literally means drifting along with the big flow. The sound liū slides off the tongue like something slipping downstream, matching the go-with-the-majority sense.
随 — 辶 (walk) + 阝 (mound) + 有 phonetic
随 combines the walk radical 辶 with a phonetic component derived from 隋. The original sense is 'to follow along a path,' from the walking radical suggesting movement after someone. Over time it broadened to mean 'follow,' 'accompany,' or 'comply with.'
大 — pictograph of a person with arms outstretched
大 is a pictograph showing a person standing with arms and legs spread wide. The outstretched arms suggest 'big' or 'great', extending from the literal image of a large stance to abstract meanings like important or grand. It is one of the oldest characters, found on oracle bones.
溜 — water 氵 + 留 (liú, stay)
A semantic-phonetic compound: the water radical 氵 gives the meaning (smooth, slippery, flowing) while 留 supplies the sound. Originally describing water flowing swiftly and smoothly, it extended to mean 'slip,' 'glide,' or 'sneak away,' as well as 'slippery' surfaces.