架空

jiàkōng

verb #47,283

Meanings

1 to build on stilts / suspend overhead
2 to install (cables etc.) overhead
3 to make (sb) a mere figurehead, sideline (of power)
4 (of fiction) set in an alternate / fabricated world

Characters

to set up / frame

Examples

电线架空在马路两旁。

Diànxiàn jiàkōng zài mǎlù liǎng páng.

The electric wires are strung overhead on both sides of the road.

总经理被董事会架空了。

Zǒngjīnglǐ bèi dǒngshìhuì jiàkōng le.

The CEO has been sidelined by the board into a figurehead.

这部小说是一个架空的历史世界。

Zhè bù xiǎoshuō shì yī gè jiàkōng de lìshǐ shìjiè.

This novel is set in an alternate-history world.

Tips

usage

架空 has three distinct registers: (1) literal — overhead/elevated structures; (2) political — to neutralize someone's authority while leaving the title; (3) literary — 架空历史 (alternate history) is a major genre in Chinese web fiction.

Stroke Order

架 jià

空 kōng