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The Chinese word **天桥 (tiānqiáo)**, meaning "pedestrian overpass" or "footbridge," is a compound noun formed through semantic combination. It is composed of two characters: **天 (tiān)**, meaning "sky" or "heaven," and **桥 (qiáo)**, meaning "bridge." The term is conceptually formed by describing the structure's function—a bridge that elevates pedestrians above ground level, metaphorically placing it in the "sky" to separate foot traffic from vehicular traffic below. This straightforward, descriptive compounding is a common method in Chinese for creating new words by logically combining existing meaningful elements.

Word Definition - 天桥

tiān qiáo Tianqiao district of Jinan city 濟南市|济南市[jǐ nán shì], Shandong; Tianqiao district in Beijing, formerly a center of folk culture; overhead walkway; pedestrian bridge

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