TongTong
Sign in

泰山 (Tài shān) — Mount Tai (sacred mountain in Shandong); (figurative) something of great weight, importance, or stability; (respectful term) father-in-law (wife's father)

Definition

Literally 'Mount Tai,' a famous sacred mountain in Shandong, used as the gold-standard metaphor for great weight or stability (e.g., 重于泰山). Also a respectful term for one's father-in-law.

noun
Mount Tai (sacred mountain in Shandong)(figurative) something of great weightimportanceor stability(respectful term) father-in-law (wife's father)
Measure word · 座

Examples

  • 泰山，。
    Wǒ pá guò Tài shān, fēng jǐng hěn měi.
    I've climbed Mount Tai, and the scenery is beautiful.
  • ，。
    Zhè jiàn shì qing zhòng yú Tài shān, yí dìng yào zuò hǎo.
    This matter is extremely important — we must do it well.
  • 泰山。
    Wǒ de Tài shān shì yí wèi tuì xiū jiào shī.
    My father-in-law is a retired teacher.

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.

泰tàipeaceful or great
山shānmountain

泰山 names Mount Tai: 泰 means peaceful or great, and 山 means mountain.

Characters in this word

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
廾廾gǒngtwo hands
水水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
大
大dà泰tài
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

泰 combines 大 for sound with 廾 (two hands) and 水 (water), showing hands handling water or something slippery.

Open 泰 →

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 →
Appears in
China — Places

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