TongTong
Sign in

山头 (shān tóu) — mountain top, summit; (figurative) mountain stronghold, faction base

Definition

Literally 'mountain top / summit' — the physical peak. Figuratively, a power base of a faction, e.g. bandits' stronghold, so it also means the faction itself (different camps = 不同的山头).

noun
mountain topsummit(figurative) mountain strongholdfaction base
Measure word · 座

Examples

  • 山头，。
    Wǒ men pá dào le shān tóu shàng, jǐng sè fēi cháng měi.
    We climbed to the top of the mountain, and the scenery was very beautiful.
  • 山头。
    Zhè ge shān tóu céng jīng shì tǔ fěi de gēn jù dì.
    This mountain stronghold was once a bandit base.
  • 山头。
    Liǎng gǔ shì lì wèi le zhēng duó zhè ge shān tóu zhǎn kāi le jī zhàn.
    Two forces engaged in fierce battle over control of this mountaintop stronghold.

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.

山shānmountain
头tóutop

山 and 头 give the mountain's top, hence summit or stronghold.

Characters in this word

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

山 shows three mountain peaks side by side.

Open 山 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 頭; 头 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
頁頁yèhead
Sound part声符shēngfú
豆
豆dòu頭tóu
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 頭 shows 頁, meaning head, beside 豆 as a sound component; the simplified 头 is a later shorthand.

Open 头 →
Appears in
Geography & Landforms

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.