断头台

斷頭台

duàntóutái

noun #16,405

Meanings

1 guillotine
2 scaffold (for execution)

Characters

to cut off; to sever

platform; stage

Examples

法国大革命期间，很多人被送上了断头台。

Fǎguó Dà Gémìng qījiān, hěn duō rén bèi sòng shàng le duàntóutái.

During the French Revolution, many people were sent to the guillotine.

国王最终也没能逃过断头台。

Guówáng zuìzhōng yě méi néng táoguò duàntóutái.

The king ultimately couldn't escape the guillotine either.

Tips

memory

The name is wonderfully literal: 断 (cut/sever) + 头 (head) + 台 (platform) = 'head-severing platform.'

history

The guillotine is strongly associated with the French Revolution (1789). France didn't abolish capital punishment until 1981, and the guillotine was its method until the end.

Stroke Order

断 duàn

头 tóu

台 tái