追根溯源 trace to the source
Explanation
追根溯源的意思是追溯事情的根源，找出事情的根本原因。
The meaning of tracing things to their source is to trace the origin of things and find out the root cause.
Origin Story
很久以前，在一个偏远的山村里，住着一户人家，他们世代以打渔为生。有一天，村里来了一个年轻的学者，他见村民们世代捕鱼，却对鱼的种类、生长习性、以及鱼群的迁徙路线知之甚少，便决定帮助他们追根溯源，了解鱼类知识。学者先从村民们常用的渔具入手，仔细研究了渔网的编织方法、鱼钩的设计原理等，然后又学习了当地流传已久的渔歌，从中挖掘出了许多关于鱼类习性的信息。接下来，他开始查阅大量的书籍文献，了解各种鱼类的生物特征、生活环境、繁殖方式等。他发现，当地水域的鱼类资源非常丰富，种类繁多，其中不乏一些珍稀品种。为了更好地保护这些鱼类资源，学者建议村民们采取更科学的捕捞方式，并组织他们学习鱼类知识，提高他们的环保意识。经过学者的不懈努力，村民们对鱼类的认识有了很大的提高，他们的捕捞方式也更加科学合理，渔业资源得到了有效保护，村里的生活也越来越好。这个故事说明了，追根溯源，了解事物发展的根本原因，才能更好地解决问题，推动事物的发展。
A long time ago, in a remote village, there lived a family who had made their living by fishing for generations. One day, a young scholar came to the village. Seeing that the villagers had been fishing for generations, but knew little about the types of fish, their growth habits, and their migration routes, he decided to help them trace the origins of the fish and learn more about fish. The scholar started with the fishing tools commonly used by the villagers and carefully studied the weaving methods of fishing nets, the design principles of fishing hooks, etc. Then he learned the local fishing songs that had been passed down for a long time, and from them he dug out a lot of information about the habits of fish. Next, he began to consult a large number of books and documents to understand the biological characteristics, living environment, and reproduction methods of various kinds of fish. He found that the fish resources in the local waters were very rich and diverse, and there were many rare species. In order to better protect these fish resources, the scholar suggested that the villagers adopt a more scientific fishing method, and organized them to learn about fish knowledge and improve their environmental awareness. Through the unremitting efforts of the scholar, the villagers' understanding of fish has greatly improved, their fishing methods have become more scientific and reasonable, fishery resources have been effectively protected, and the village's life has become better and better. This story shows that by tracing the origins of things and understanding the fundamental reasons for their development, we can better solve problems and promote the development of things.
Usage
追根溯源通常用作谓语或宾语，用于追查事情的根源。
Tracing things to their source is usually used as a predicate or object to investigate the origin of things.
Examples
-
为了弄清事情的来龙去脉，我们必须追根溯源。
wèile nòng qīng shì qing de lái lóng mò mài, wǒmen bìxū zhuīgēnsùyuán
To understand the ins and outs of the matter, we must trace it to its source.
-
我们要追根溯源，找出问题的根源。
wǒmen yào zhuīgēnsùyuán, zhǎo chū wèntí de gēnyuán
We need to trace the matter to its source to find out the root of the problem.