寒光 (hán guāng) — cold gleam (as from a sword blade); pallid light

Definition

Literary word for the pale, cold gleam of metal or moonlight — sharper and more poetic than 亮光 ('light, brightness'). Most often used for the flash of a blade.

noun
cold gleam (as from a sword blade)pallid light
Measure word · 道

Examples

  • ，寒光。
    Bǎo jiàn chū qiào, hán guāng yì shǎn.
    The treasured sword left its sheath, and a cold gleam flashed.
  • ，寒光。
    Yuè guāng xià, nà bǎ dāo de hán guāng lìng rén dǎn hán.
    Under the moonlight, the cold gleam of that knife made people shudder.
  • 寒光，。
    Dōng yè de hán guāng yìng zài xuě dì shàng, gé wài cì yǎn.
    The cold light of the winter night reflected on the snow, especially dazzling.

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.

寒háncold
光guānglight

寒 means cold and 光 means light, giving a cold gleam.

Characters in this word

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

  • 宀宀miánhouse
  • 人人rénperson
  • 茻茻mǎnggrass

寒 shows 宀 (house), 人 (person), and 茻 (grass): a person sleeping in grass inside a house to keep out the cold.

Open 寒 →

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

  • 火火huǒfire
  • 卩卩jiékneeling person

The shape 光 places 火 (fire) above 卩 (a kneeling person), showing fire over the head and the shining of light.

Open 光 →

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