殿堂

diàntáng
noun HSK 7 #17,137

Meanings

  1. 1 palace hall; grand hall
  2. 2 hall of fame; pinnacle (figurative)

Characters

Palace (殿) + grand hall () — literally a magnificent hall, figuratively the highest level of achievement.

Examples

Gùgōng de diàntáng xióngwěi zhuàngguān.
The palace halls of the Forbidden City are grand and magnificent.
Tā zhōngyú zǒu jìn le yīnyuè de diàntáng.
She finally entered the hall of music (reached the pinnacle of music).

Tips

usage
The figurative use of 殿堂 is very popular: 艺术殿堂 (hall of art), 学术殿堂 (hall of academia), 音乐殿堂 (hall of music). It means the highest, most prestigious level of a field — equivalent to 'the pantheon of' in English.

Stroke Order

殿 diàn
táng