天花板 tiānhuābǎn ceiling (of a room)
ceiling (of a room); (figuratively) upper limit; (slang) the very best (in a given field)
How to remember 天花板: 天 day + 花 flower + 板 board = ceiling (of a room).
Characters
How it is used
- A ceiling, and figuratively an upper limit - 玻璃天花板 (bōli tiānhuābǎn) the glass ceiling; also recent slang 天花板 = the very best in a field (颜值天花板 the peak of good looks).
- The trendy 'the absolute best' sense is now very common online. Colloquial.
Example sentences
- 他把天花板刷成了蓝色。 Tā bǎ tiānhuābǎn shuāchéng le lánsè.He painted the ceiling blue.
- 天花板上有洞。 Tiānhuābǎn shàng yǒu dòng.There are holes in the ceiling.
- 他把一盏灯挂在了天花板上。 Tā bǎ yīzhǎndēng guà zài le tiānhuābǎn shàng.He hung a lamp from the ceiling.