p8nda
p8nda BETA
Home Dictionary Translate Flashcards

压轴

壓軸
yāzhòu
verb HSK 7-9

Meanings

  1. 1 to close a programme with the star item
  2. 2 to be the climactic, next-to-last item on a bill

Examples

HSK 4
这部电影是他今年的压轴之作。
Zhè bù diànyǐng shì tā jīnnián de yāzhòu zhī zuò.
This film is his headline release of the year.
HSK 7-9
她的节目压轴，把整场晚会推向了高潮。
Tā de jiémù yāzhòu, bǎ zhěng chǎng wǎnhuì tuīxiàng le gāocháo.
Her act closed the gala and carried it to its high point.
HSK 7-9
组织者让最有名的乐队压轴出场。
Zǔzhīzhě ràng zuì yǒumíng de yuèduì yāzhòu chūchǎng.
The organizers gave the closing slot to the best-known band.

Tips

history
On an old opera bill the pieces were counted by the scrolls their scripts were wound on, and 压轴 was the piece that pressed down on the roll: the heavyweight placed second from last, with a short send-off piece, the 大轴, after it. Everyday use has since slid it forward to mean the grand finale itself.
mistakes
The second syllable is zhòu, falling tone, not the everyday zhóu of 车轴, an axle. Only this theatre word takes the falling reading.

Stroke Order

压 yā
轴 zhóu