彩霞

cǎixiá

noun HSK 7

Meanings

1 colorful clouds; rosy clouds (at sunrise or sunset)

Characters

color; colorful

rosy clouds; morning/evening glow

Literally 'colorful glow-clouds.' 霞 specifically refers to the warm-colored clouds at dawn and dusk, not ordinary clouds (云).

Examples

傍晚的天空布满了彩霞。

Bàngwǎn de tiānkōng bùmǎn le cǎixiá.

The evening sky was filled with colorful clouds.

日出时的彩霞美极了。

Rìchū shí de cǎixiá měi jí le.

The rosy clouds at sunrise were incredibly beautiful.

Tips

culture

霞 is a popular character in women's names (彩霞, 朝霞, 晚霞) because of its association with beauty and warmth. The weather proverb 朝霞不出门，晚霞行千里 (red sky in morning, stay home; red sky at night, travel far) mirrors the English 'red sky at night, sailor's delight.'

Stroke Order

彩 cǎi

霞 xiá