杪 (miǎo) - tip of a branch or twig & end, extremity

杪Tone 3

miǎo ｜ 8 strokes ｜ radical: 木

伦妙

杪 · miǎo

tip of a branch or twig;

end, extremity;

the end of a year or season

tip of a branch or twigend, extremitythe end of a year or season

Usage highlights

branch tipyear's endmountain edgetwig endmonth's endforest tip

Synonyms

  • 末— end, tip
  • 梢— tip, end of branch
  • 尖— point, tip

Antonyms

  • 根— root, base
  • 本— origin, foundation
  • 初— beginning, start

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • The leaves at the branch tip (树杪) trembled in the wind.
  • We will finish the project by year's end (岁杪).
  • The mountain path became narrow at the edge (山杪).

Collocations

  • branch tip(树杪)
  • year's end(岁杪)
  • mountain edge(山杪)
  • twig end(枝杪)
  • month's end(月杪)
  • forest tip(林杪)

Idioms

  • At the tip of a branch, the end of a leaf(枝杪末节)
  • The year's end and the month's beginning(岁杪月朔)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • Used in classical Chinese to denote the end of time periods, especially years.
  • Appears in poetic contexts to describe delicate natural scenes like trembling leaves.

FAQ