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良宵 (liáng xiāo) — a beautiful night; a delightful evening

Definition

Literary, poetic word for a 'beautiful, delightful night.' Stronger and more elegant than the everyday 晚上 — used in writing, poetry, or festive occasions (Mid-Autumn, New Year), not casual speech.

noun
a beautiful nighta delightful evening

Examples

  • 良宵。
    Jīn wǎn de liáng xiāo zhēn shì lìng rén xīn kuàng shén yí.
    Tonight's beautiful evening truly refreshes the mind and spirit.
  • 良宵，。
    Zài zhè liáng xiāo yǔ péng you gòng yǐn, hé děng kuài zāi.
    Drinking with friends on such a fine night — how delightful it is.
  • 《良宵》，。
    Tā tán zòu le yì qǔ 《liáng xiāo》, qín shēng yōu yáng.
    He played the piece 'Liang Xiao', and the sound of the instrument was melodious.

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.

良liánggood
宵xiāonight

良 means good or beautiful, and 宵 means night; together they describe a delightful evening.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

良 possibly depicts corridors and a room.

Open 良 →

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
宀宀miánroof
Sound part声符shēngfú
肖
肖xiào宵xiāo
Same sound today

宵 pairs 宀 (roof) with 肖, a part that gives the sound.

Open 宵 →
Appears in
Good & BadTime of Day

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