阁楼 (gé lóu) — garret, loft | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

阁楼 is a small room or storage area built under the roof (an attic/loft), not a regular floor. Don't confuse with 楼道, which is the hallway or corridor of a building.

noun

garretloft

Measure word · 个

Examples

阁楼。
Zhè dòng lǎo fáng zi yǒu yí gè xiǎo xiǎo de gé lóu.
This old house has a small loft.
阁楼。
Tā men bǎ bú yòng de jiā jù dōu bān dào le gé lóu lǐ.
They moved all the unused furniture into the attic.
阁楼，。
gé lóu De chuāng hu hěn xiǎo, suǒ yǐ guāng xiàn bù zú.
The loft's windows are very small, so the light is insufficient.

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.

The small upper structure in 阁 combines with the story or room in 楼 to name a loft.

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 閣; 阁 is its simplified writing.

門各閣

Meaning part形符xíngfú

門門méngate

Sound part声符shēngfú

各

各gè閣gé

Same sound today

The traditional form 閣 pairs 門 (gate) with 各, which gives the pronunciation; this note is about 閣, not the simplified 阁.

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 樓; 楼 is its simplified writing.

木婁樓

Meaning part形符xíngfú

木木mùtree

Sound part声符shēngfú

婁

婁lóu樓lóu

Same sound today

The traditional form 樓 pairs 木 (tree) with 婁 as its sound part; the simplified 楼 is a later shorthand.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Home & Housing Rooms & Spaces

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