宫阙

宮闕
gōngquè
noun

Meanings

  1. 1 palace
  2. 2 imperial palace (literary)

Examples

HSK 7-9
Wēi'é de gōngquè zài xīyáng xià shǎnyào.
The towering palace shimmered in the setting sun.
HSK 7-9
Shīrén bǐxià de gōngquè zǒng dài zhe jǐ fēn yōushāng.
Poets always paint imperial palaces with a touch of melancholy.
HSK 7-9
Gùgōng de gōngquè céngjīng shì Míng Qīng liǎng dài de zhèngzhì zhōngxīn.
The palaces of the Forbidden City were once the political heart of the Ming and Qing dynasties.

Tips

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宫阙 is literary, mostly seen in classical poetry and historical writing. For everyday 'palace' say 宫殿.

In Pop Culture

不知天上宫阙今夕是何年 Bùzhī tiānshàng gōngquè, jīnxīshìhénián
Not knowing what year it is tonight in the celestial palace
Famous line from Su Shi's 《水调歌头》(Shuǐ Diào Gē Tóu, 1076), one of the most quoted Mid-Autumn Festival poems in Chinese.

Stroke Order

gōng
què