悬崖 (xuán yá) — cliff, precipice | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

cliffprecipice

Measure word · 座

悬崖，。
Nà miàn xuán yá fēi cháng dǒu qiào, méi yǒu rén gǎn kào jìn.
That cliff is very steep; no one dares to get close.
悬崖，。
Cóng xuán yá shàng fǔ kàn dà hǎi, jǐng sè lìng rén zhèn hàn.
Looking down at the sea from the cliff, the view was breathtaking.
悬崖。
Tàn xiǎn duì xiǎo xīn yì yì dì yán zhe xuán yá biān yuán qián jìn.
The expedition cautiously advanced along the edge of the cliff.

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.

悬 means hanging and 崖 means cliff, giving an overhanging cliff.

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 懸; 悬 is its simplified writing.

縣心懸

Meaning part形符xíngfú

心心xīnheart

Sound part声符shēngfú

縣

縣xiàn懸xuán

Same sound today

The traditional form 懸 adds 心, “heart,” to the older form 縣, which gave the sound. The simplified 悬 is a later abbreviation.

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

山厓崖

Meaning part形符xíngfú

山山shānmountain

Sound part声符shēngfú

厓

厓yá崖yá

Same sound today

崖 pairs 山 (mountain) with 厓 (cliff), and 厓 gives the sound yá.

Appears in