千 qiān
- Strokes
- 3
- Radical
- 十 — ten, tenth
千钧一发
qiānjūnyífà
at a critical moment; extremely perilous
Characters in this word
钧 jūn
- Strokes
- 9
- Radical
- 钅 — gold, metal
- Made of
- 钅 gold, metal 匀 equal
- How it's built
- Phono-semantic — one part hints at the meaning, another at the sound
一 yī
- Strokes
- 1
- Radical
- 一 — one
- How it's built
- Ideograph — the meaning is built from its parts
发 fā
- Strokes
- 5
- Radical
- 又 — and, also, again, in addition
Example phrases
- 列车即将进站时，工作人员在千钧一发之际把孩子拉回站台。 Lièchē jíjiāng jìn zhàn shí, gōngzuò rényuán zài qiānjūn yífà zhī jì bǎ háizi lā huí zhàntái. As the train was about to enter the station, a staff member pulled the child back onto the platform at the critical moment.
- 汽车突然刹车，千钧一发之际他拉住了孩子。 Qìchē tūrán shāchē, qiānjūn yīfà zhī jì tā lāzhùle háizi. The car braked suddenly; at the very last moment he grabbed hold of the child.
- 在千钧一发的时刻，消防员冲进屋里救人。 Zài qiānjūn yīfà de shíkè, xiāofángyuán chōng jìn wūlǐ jiùrén. In that perilous moment, the firefighter rushed into the house to save someone.
Related words
- 千 qiān thousand
- 千克 qiānkè kilogram
- 千万 qiānwàn be sure to; never (for emphasis)
- 成千上万 chéngqiānshàngwàn tens of thousands, numerous
- 千家万户 qiānjiāwànhù countless households
- 千变万化 qiānbiànwànhuà ever-changing; constantly changing
- 千方百计 qiānfāngbǎijì by every possible means
- 千军万马 qiānjūnwànmǎ a mighty force; a vast multitude
- 千姿百态 qiānzībǎitài in a great variety of forms; diverse and colourful
- 一 yī one
- 一半 yíbàn half
- 一会儿 yíhuìr a moment, a little while