危楼 (wēi lóu) — (modern) dangerous or dilapidated building, especially one structurally unsafe; (literary) high tower, tall building

Definition

Literary word for a tall tower, literally 'perilous building' — 危 (wēi) carries both senses of 'high' and 'dangerous,' which is why it is also used for a structurally unsafe building.

noun
(modern) dangerous or dilapidated building, especially one structurally unsafe(literary) high towertall building
Measure word · 座

Examples

  • 危楼。
    Nà zuò wēi lóu yǐ jīng bèi chāi chú le.
    That dangerous building has already been demolished.
  • 危楼，。
    Zhè zuò wēi lóu de jié gòu bù ān quán, bù néng zhù rén.
    The structure of this dangerous building is unsafe and cannot be lived in.
  • 危楼。
    Gǔ shī zhōng cháng tí dào gāo gāo zài shàng de wēi lóu.
    In ancient poems, lofty high towers are often mentioned.

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.

危wēihigh
楼lóubuilding

危 can mean high or dangerous, and 楼 means building, giving a high tower or building, also a dangerous building.

Characters in this word

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

  • 厃厃wěiperson on a cliff or mountain
  • 卩卩jiékneeling person

危 is built from 厃, showing a person on a cliff or mountain, and 卩, showing a kneeling person.

Open 危 →

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 樓; 楼 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
木木mùtree
Sound part声符shēngfú
婁
婁lóu樓lóu
Same sound today

The traditional form 樓 pairs 木 (tree) with 婁 as its sound part; the simplified 楼 is a later shorthand.

Open 楼 →

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