min5 lau4冕旒
Jyutpingmin5 lau4
Yalemíhn làuh
Definition
Ceremonial crown worn by emperors and high officials in ancient China, featuring bead-curtain tassels.
writtenother
How it's used
Refers specifically to the ceremonial headgear featuring dangling strings of beads, which were designed to obscure the emperor's face to signify dignity and impartiality. It is almost exclusively encountered in historical dramas, period literature, or museum contexts. Using it to describe a modern crown or tiara is incorrect and would sound jarringly out of place.
Measure word
ding2頂díngExamples
The crown worn by the emperor is very heavy.
Related words
Common mistake
Learners often mistake it for a generic term for any crown, but it strictly denotes the specific ancient Chinese style with beaded curtains. For a modern or Western-style crown, use 皇冠 instead.
Grammar color guide
Noun
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Grammar guides
- In 30 secondsThe whole language at a glance. No tenses, no plurals, six tones, sentence particles. Read this before you dive into any specific topic.
- ParticlesSentence particles add tone, emotion, and nuance. Learn the most common particles in Cantonese and how to use them.
- Possession (嘅)How to say my, your, and his, and how to link a describing word to a noun, all with the little word 嘅 (ge3).
