苍穹 (cāng qióng) — the firmament; the vast sky (literary)

Definition

Literary, poetic word for 'the vault of heaven / the vast sky,' mostly used in writing or evocative prose rather than everyday speech.

noun
the firmamentthe vast sky (literary)

Examples

  • 苍穹，。
    Yǎng wàng cāng qióng, xīng xing shǎn shuò.
    Looking up at the firmament, the stars twinkle.
  • 苍穹。
    Xióng yīng zài cāng qióng zhōng áo xiáng.
    The eagle soars in the vault of heaven.
  • 苍穹。
    Tā de mèng xiǎng rú cāng qióng bān guǎng kuò.
    His dreams are as vast as the firmament.

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.

苍cāngdark blue
穹qióngdome

苍 gives the deep blue color, and 穹 is the dome, forming the vast sky.

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 蒼; 苍 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
艸艸cǎograss
Sound part声符shēngfú
倉
倉cāng蒼cāng
Same sound today

The traditional form 蒼 pairs 艸 (grass) with 倉 as a sound part. The simplified 苍 is a later shorthand, and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 苍 →

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
穴穴xué
Sound part声符shēngfú
弓
弓gōng穹qióng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

穹 is made of 穴 and 弓; 弓 gives the sound.

Open 穹 →

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