千秋 (qiān qiū) — a thousand years; a very long time; (formal) bi…

Definition

Literary word meaning 'a thousand years / a very long time', used in formal writing (千秋大业 'a great undertaking for the ages'). Also used in birthday wishes to elderly people, as in 千秋长寿.

noun

a thousand yearsa very long time(formal) birthday congratulations (used for elderly)

Examples

千秋。
Zhè xiàng gōng chéng jiāng zào fú qiān qiū.
This project will benefit people for a thousand years.
千秋，。
Zhù nín qiān qiū cháng shòu, fú shòu ān kāng.
Wishing you a long life and good health, a thousand autumns of longevity.
千秋。
qiān qiū Dà yè xū yào jǐ dài rén de nǔ lì.
The great undertaking of a thousand years requires the efforts of several generations.

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.

千qiānthousand

秋qiūautumn

千, thousand, and 秋, autumn, together suggest a very long time.

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

一一yīone, signifying a number

Sound part声符shēngfú

人

人rén千qiān

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

千 pairs 人, whose sound was similar, with 一, a number stroke; the extra line was explained as extension, and a thousand is a number reached by extending counting.

Open 千 →

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

禾禾hégrain

Sound part声符shēngfú

𤒅

𤒅𤒅秋qiū

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

The shape 秋 pairs 禾 (grain) with 𤒅, which gives the sound.

Open 秋 →

Appears in

Time (Abstract)