长空 (cháng kōng) — the vast sky, firmament

Definition

noun
the vast skyfirmament

Examples

  • 长空。
    Xióng yīng zài cháng kōng zhōng áo xiáng.
    The eagle soars in the vast sky.
  • 长空，。
    Yǎng wàng cháng kōng, xīn kuàng shén yí.
    Looking up at the vast sky, one feels relaxed and happy.
  • 长空，。
    cháng kōng Wàn lǐ, bái yún duǒ duǒ.
    The vast sky stretches for ten thousand miles, with white clouds dotting it.

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.

长chánglong
空kōngsky

长 stretches out and 空 is the sky, giving the vast expanse overhead.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 長; 长 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 長 pictures an old man with long hair. The simplified 长 is a later shorthand, so its strokes do not show that original picture.

Open 长 →

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xuécave, hole
Sound part声符shēngfú
工
工gōng空kōng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

空 is built from 穴, a cave or hole, and 工, which gives the sound.

Open 空 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.