笼罩 (lǒng zhào) — to envelop, to shroud | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

笼罩 describes an atmosphere or mood (often intangible — fog, silence, fear) that spreads over and wraps a place or people. Unlike 包围 ('surround' in space) or 掩盖/掩饰 ('hide/conceal' something specific), 笼罩 has no object to hide — it IS the covering.

verb

to envelopto shroud

Examples

笼罩。
Yè sè lǒng zhào le zhěng zuò xiǎo zhèn.
The night enveloped the entire small town.
笼罩。
Yì zhǒng kǒng bù de qì fen lǒng zhào zhe dà jiā.
A terrifying atmosphere enveloped everyone.
笼罩。
Xǐ yuè lǒng zhào le měi gè rén de xīn.
Joy enveloped everyone's heart.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

笼 'cover' and 罩 'cover' combine to describe enveloping.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 籠; 笼 is its simplified writing.

𥫗龍籠

Meaning part形符xíngfú

𥫗Written in full as竹zhú

Sound part声符shēngfú

龍

龍lóng籠lóng

Same sound today

The traditional form 籠 is built from 竹 (bamboo) and 龍, which gives the sound. The simplified 笼 is a later shorthand.

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

罒卓罩

Meaning part形符xíngfú

罒Written in full as网wǎng

Sound part声符shēngfú

卓

卓zhuó罩zhào

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

罩 combines 罒, a form of 网 “net”, with 卓, which gives the sound.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 HSK 2.0 Level 6

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