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明灯 (míng dēng) — bright lamp; beacon; guiding light (figurative)

Definition

At HSK 7, 明灯 is used almost entirely figuratively for a guiding light or beacon — a person, idea, or work that points the way forward. The literal 'bright lamp' sense is rare in modern usage.

noun
bright lampbeaconguiding light (figurative)
Measure word · 盏

Examples

  • 明灯。
    Shān dǐng shàng de míng dēng wèi yè xíng zhě zhǐ míng le fāng xiàng.
    The bright lamp on the mountaintop showed the way for the night traveler.
  • 明灯，。
    Tā de jīng shén rú tóng yí zuò míng dēng, zhào liàng le wǒ men qián jìn de dào lù.
    His spirit is like a beacon, lighting the path forward for us.
  • 明灯。
    Zhè běn shū bèi yù wéi xiàn dài wén xué zhōng de yí zuò míng dēng.
    This book is acclaimed as a beacon in modern literature.

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.

明míngbright
灯dēnglamp

A 灯 lamp that is 明 bright.

Characters in this word

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

明 combines 日 (sun) and 月 (moon), showing the sun just rising while the moon has not yet set, or two bright objects in the sky, to express brightness.

Open 明 →

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
火火huǒ
Sound part声符shēngfú
丁
丁dīng灯dēng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

灯 pairs 火, which shows fire, with 丁, which gives the sound.

Open 灯 →
Appears in
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