连天 (lián tiān) — to touch the sky; to extend to the horizon; for several days in a row; incessantly

Definition

Used as a vivid adverbial: 'reaching to the sky' (e.g. mountains 连天) or 'for days on end' (e.g. 连天工作). Often appears before a verb or noun to intensify scale or duration.

verb
to touch the skyto extend to the horizonfor several days in a rowincessantly

Examples

  • 连天，。
    Yuǎn chù de dà shān lián tiān, kàn qǐ lái fēi cháng zhuàng guān.
    The distant mountains touch the sky, looking very magnificent.
  • ，。
    Zhè yǔ yǐ jīng lián le sān tiān tiān le, zhēn ràng rén xīn fán.
    This rain has been going on for three days straight; it's really annoying.
  • 连天，。
    Tā lián tiān gōng zuò, shēn tǐ dōu kuài shòu bù liǎo le.
    He has been working for days on end; his body can barely take it anymore.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

连liánjoin or extend
天tiānsky

连 expresses joining or extending, and 天 is the sky; the picture is something stretching until it joins the sky, hence reaching far or lasting for days.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 連; 连 is its simplified writing.

  • 辶辵chuòto walk
  • 車車jūchariot

The traditional form 連 joins 辶 (walk) and 車 (chariot) to show a man-drawn carriage; this note is about 連, not the simplified 连.

Open 连 →

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 →

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