老天 (lǎo tiān) — Heaven, Providence | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Colloquial, everyday term for 'Heaven' as a vague higher power that watches over people. Use in spoken interjections like 老天啊, not in formal writing.

noun

HeavenProvidence

老天。
lǎo tiān Bǎo yòu wǒ men yí lù píng ān.
May Heaven bless us with a safe journey.
老天，。
Tā zǒng shuō lǎo tiān shì gōng píng de, hǎo rén huì yǒu hǎo bào.
He always says Heaven is fair and good people will be rewarded.
老天，！
lǎo tiān A, zhōng yú tōng guò le!
Oh Heaven, I finally passed!

Derived word

构词法gòucífǎ

前缀qiánzhuìPrefix

A fixed syllable in front that adds a shade of meaning but carries none of its own.

老lǎofamiliarizing

The familiarizing 老 joins with 天 to mean Heaven or Providence.

Characters in this word

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

The shape 老 combines 人 (man), 毛 (hair), and 匕 (cane), showing a man with long hair leaning on a cane.

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

Sound part声符shēngfú

丁

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

The shape comes from a frontal standing man 大 with a head; 天 pairs 大 with 丁 for sound.

Appears in