Definitions

liáo (adjective) empty; sparse; scarce
liáo (adjective) lonesome; solitary

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. represents the meaning and represents the sound.

Semantic: Phonetic:

About

The Chinese character 寥 (liáo) conveys ideas of emptiness, desolation, and scarcity, often evoking vast, uninhabited spaces or a stark lack of people and things. It is structurally composed of the roof radical 宀 (mián) at the top, which originally indicated an empty dwelling. Below it sits the phonetic component 翏 (liù or liáo), depicting feathers flying high, which provides the basis for its pronunciation. Over time, its meaning extended from literal vacant buildings to abstract concepts like the emptiness of the sky, the silence of isolation, or the rarity of items, frequently used in poetic or formal contexts to express profound loneliness, spaciousness, or extreme scarcity.

Example Sentences Hide

夜晚的街道很寂

Yèwǎn de jiēdào hěn jìliáo.

The street at night is very desolate.

观众,演出照常进行。

Guānzhòng liáoliáo, yǎnchū zhàocháng jìnxíng.

The audience is sparse, but the performance goes on as usual.

秋天,花园里花草落。

Qiūtiān, huāyuán lǐ huācǎo liáoluò.

In autumn, the flowers and plants in the garden are sparse.

仰望廓的天空,他陷入沉思。

Yǎngwàng liáokuò de tiānkōng, tā xiànrù chénsī.

Gazing at the vast sky, he fell into deep thought.

尽管外面热闹非凡,他的世界却一片寂

Jǐnguǎn wàimiàn rènào fēifán, tā de shìjiè què yīpiàn jìliáo.

Although it is bustling outside, his world is very lonely.

战乱过后,小镇显得格外落。

Zhànluàn guòhòu, xiǎo zhèn xiǎndé géwài liáoluò.

After the war, the small town appears particularly desolate.

廓的宇宙面前,人类显得渺小。

Zài liáokuò de yǔzhòu miànqián, rénlèi xiǎndé miǎoxiǎo.

In the face of the vast universe, humanity appears small.

他寂地坐在窗前,望着落的星空。

Tā jìliáo de zuò zài chuāng qián, wàngzhe liáoluò de xīngkōng.

He sat lonely by the window, gazing at the sparse stars.