pōtiān

泼天

Word · AdjectiveTraditional潑天

enormous; vast; immense

Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma

Meanings

1 sense · 5 examples
1.

adjective

enormous; vast; immense

literary

This term is predominantly found in early vernacular Chinese (Early Mandarin) and classical literature. It's used for dramatic emphasis on the scale or quantity of something, often negative events like disasters or, less commonly, positive things like wealth or ability. It has a literary and somewhat archaic flavor.

Yī一
chǎng场
pō泼
tiān天
dà大
huò祸
 ,
shǐ使
zhè这
ge个
xiǎo小
cūn村
zhuāng庄
jī几
hū乎
bèi被
yí夷
wéi为
píng平
dì地
 。

A catastrophic disaster nearly flattened this small village.

Tā他
jiā家
zǔ祖
shàng上
liú留
xià下
le了
pō泼
tiān天
jiā家
yè业
 ,
jǐ几
bèi辈
zi子
dōu都
xiǎng享
yòng用
bù不
wán完
 。

His ancestors left behind an immense family fortune, enough for several generations to live on.

Show 3 more examples
Zài在
 《
Shuǐ水
hǔ浒
zhuàn传
 》
lǐ里
 ,
nà那
xiē些
hǎo好
hàn汉
dà大
duō多
yǒu有
pō泼
tiān天
běn本
shi事
 。

In *The Water Margin*, most of those heroes possessed exceptional skills.

Tā他
fàn犯
xià下
de的
shì是
pō泼
tiān天
zuì罪
xíng行
 ,
wàn万
sǐ死
nán难
shú赎
 。

He committed monstrous crimes that no amount of punishment could atone for.

Zhè这
pō泼
tiān天
de的
fù富
guì贵
 ,
tā他
jìng竟
bù不
dǒng懂
dé得
zhēn珍
xī惜
 。

He didn't even know how to cherish this immense wealth.