lài
noun #68,980

Meanings

  1. 1 sound; noise (of nature)
  2. 2 an ancient three-reed pipe

Examples

HSK 7-9
午夜万籁俱寂山中格外安静
Wǔyè wànlàijùjì, shānzhōng géwài ānjìng.
At midnight every sound fell silent and the mountains were utterly quiet.
HSK 7-9
Fēng guò sōnglín, biànshì tiānlài.
When the wind passes through the pines, that is the natural music of heaven.

Tips

usage
mostly survives in two set words: 天籁 (sounds of nature, often praising beautiful music) and 万籁俱寂 (all sounds fall silent - total stillness). It is rarely used alone.

Components

radical
zhú
bamboo
The bamboo radical in its compressed top-cap form. It points to the original meaning: a wind instrument made of bamboo pipes. Many instrument and writing-tool characters carry this cap.
phonetic
lài
phonetic component
Supplies the sound, read identically as lài. It contributes no meaning here; its job is purely to fix the pronunciation of the bamboo-pipe character.

Stroke Order

lài