崖

yá

厓 + 山

Definitions

yá (noun) cliff; precipice

Etymology

A mountain 山 precipice 厓; 厓 also provides the pronunciation

About

崖 is a phono-semantic compound: the 山 radical, meaning 'mountain', indicates the semantic category of elevated, rocky landforms, while 厓 ('precipice') functions as the phonetic component and also reinforces the idea of an edge or bank. Its meaning is a steep, vertical, or overhanging cliff of rock, earth, or ice, typically found on mountain sides or coastlines, i.e., a sheer drop or precipice, highlighting the hazardous abruptness of such terrain. The character is widely used in geographic and poetic descriptions of extreme landscapes.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

那个悬崖很高。

Nà gè xuán yá hěn gāo.

That cliff is very high.

我们站在山崖上。

Wǒ men zhàn zài shān yá shàng.

We are standing on the mountain cliff.

崖壁非常陡峭。

Yá bì fēi cháng dǒu qiào.

The cliff face is very steep.

他从崖顶跳了下去。

Tā cóng yá dǐng tiào le xià qù.

He jumped off the cliff top.

这座断崖看起来很危险。

Zhè zuò duàn yá kàn qǐ lái hěn wēi xiǎn.

This steep cliff looks very dangerous.

探险队成功地攀上了悬崖。

Tàn xiǎn duì chéng gōng de pān shàng le xuán yá.

The expedition team successfully climbed the cliff.

在昏暗的月光下，崖边的树木显得格外诡异。

Zài hūn àn de yuè guāng xià, yá biān de shù mù xiǎn dé gé wài guǐ yì.

Under the dim moonlight, the trees at the cliff edge look particularly eerie.

为了防止游客跌落，政府在悬崖周围安装了坚固的护栏。

Wèi le fáng zhǐ yóu kè diē luò, zhèng fǔ zài xuán yá zhōu wéi ān zhuāng le jiān gù de hù lán.

To prevent tourists from falling, the government installed sturdy railings around the cliff.

Related Characters

Composed characters:

Component: 厓

Component: 山

崖