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九天 (jiǔ tiān) — the ninth heaven (the highest heaven in Chinese mythology); (figurative) extremely high, sky-high

Definition

In Chinese mythology, 九天 is the highest of the nine heavens — the realm of gods and immortals. In modern use it figuratively means 'sky-high' (ambition, price).

noun
the ninth heaven (the highest heaven in Chinese mythology)(figurative) extremely highsky-high

Examples

  • 九天。
    Gǔ rén rèn wéi jiǔ tiān shì shén xiān jū zhù de dì fāng.
    Ancient people believed the ninth heaven was where immortals lived.
  • 九天。
    Tā de zhì xiàng gāo rú jiǔ tiān.
    His ambition is as high as the ninth heaven.
  • 九天！
    Zhè ge jià gé jiǎn zhí jiǔ tiān le!
    This price is sky-high!

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

九jiǔnine
天tiānheaven

九 'nine' and 天 'heaven' give the highest heaven, then sky-high.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape comes from a stylized hand bent at the wrist, with the lower-right hook showing the bend. Later, it was taken to show a tightened fist bumping up to ten, giving the number nine.

Open 九 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
大大dà
Sound part声符shēngfú
丁
丁dīng天tiān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The shape comes from a frontal standing man 大 with a head; 天 pairs 大 with 丁 for sound.

Open 天 →
Appears in
Mythology & Folklore

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