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朝圣 (cháo shèng) — to make a pilgrimage; to go on a pilgrimage (to a holy place)

Definition

A religious pilgrimage — traveling to a holy site (like Mecca, Jerusalem, Lhasa) as an act of faith. Far more specific and solemn than the general 'to visit'.

verb
to make a pilgrimageto go on a pilgrimage (to a holy place)

Examples

  • 朝圣。
    Tā měi nián dōu qù xī zàng cháo shèng.
    He goes on a pilgrimage to Tibet every year.
  • 。
    Wǒ nǎi nai yí bèi zi zhī cháo guò yí cì shèng.
    My grandmother went on a pilgrimage only once in her life.
  • 朝圣。
    Xǔ duō mù sī lín yì shēng zhōng dū huì qù mài jiā cháo shèng.
    Many Muslims go on a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in their lifetime.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

朝cháopay homage
圣shèngsacred

朝 (pay homage) and 圣 (sacred) combine to mean visiting a holy place.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

Originally, 朝 showed the sun rising above the ground while the moon was still in the sky, giving the sense of morning.

Open 朝 →

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 聖; 圣 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
耳耳ěrear
Sound part声符shēngfú
呈
呈chéng聖shèng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 聖 puts 耳 (ear) beside 呈, which gives the sound; the simplified 圣 is a shorthand, and its parts are not the historical parts.

Open 圣 →
Appears in
Religion & Belief

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