上天 (shàng tiān) — to go up to the sky; (euphemism) to die, to pass away

Definition

上天 is a verb meaning 'to go up to the sky' literally (rockets, planes, spaceflight) and is also used euphemistically to mean 'to die / pass away'. Example 2 shows the euphemistic sense used to soften talk of death.

verb
to go up to the sky(euphemism) to dieto pass away

Examples

  • 上天
    Huǒ jiàn shàng tiān le, dà jiā dōu huān hū qǐ lái.
    The rocket went up to the sky, and everyone cheered.
  • 上天
    Lǎo rén yǐ jīng shàng tiān le, qǐng jié āi.
    The elderly person has passed away, please accept my condolences.
  • Tā zhè bèi zi zhī shàng guò yí cì tiān.
    In his whole life, he has only gone up to the sky once.
Appears in

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