Chinese word

山

Pronunciation

Pinyinshān

Meaning

  • nounmountain

Example

那座山很高。nà zuò shān hěn gāo

That mountain is very high.

Illustration for 山 (mountain)

More examples

我们周末去爬山。wǒ men zhōu mò qù pá shān

We climb mountains on weekends.

Core concept

An elevated mass of land that stands out clearly from the ground around it.

Common phrases

  • 爬山pá shān

    climb mountains

  • 山上shān shàng

    on a mountain

  • 山脚shān jiǎo

    foot of a mountain

Definition in Chinese

地表上比周囲升高的部分，具有明显高度和坡度，可指小山丘到高山的不同规模。dì biǎo shàng bǐ zhōu tōng shēng gāo de bù fèn jù yǒu míng xiǎn gāo dù hé pō dù kě zhǐ xiǎo shān qiū dào gāo shān de bù tóng guī mó

Word origin

山 (shān, "mountain") is an ancient pictograph whose upright strokes suggest peaks rising from the ground.

Usage tips

  • English often separates hills from mountains, but this Chinese word can cover either size, with context supplying the difference.

Word lists with this word