摇篮

• 拼音: yáo lán
• 汉字拆解: 摇 = 扌(hand) + 䍃 (phonetic — rocking motion); 篮 = 竹 (bamboo — traditional material for cradles and baskets) + 监 (to watch over — a vessel that holds and guards)

含义

Cradle. A small bed for infants that can be rocked gently. Figuratively, the birthplace or nurturing origin of something important.

Literal: a rocking crib for babies. Figurative: 文明的摇篮 (the cradle of civilisation), 革命的摇篮 (the cradle of the revolution), 人才的摇篮 (a cradle of talent). This figurative use is extremely common in Chinese rhetoric, especially in historical, educational, and patriotic contexts. 摇篮曲 (lullaby) is a common compound.

例句

1. 黄河流域被誉为中华文明的摇篮，这片古老的土地孕育了中国数千年连绵不断的农耕文化与灿烂文明。
2. 父亲轻轻地推着摇篮，低声哼唱着一首古老的摇篮曲，小婴儿在柔和的晃动中渐渐闭上了眼睛，安然入睡。
3. 这所百年名校以培育了大批杰出的科学家和政治家而享誉全国，素有国家栋梁摇篮之称。

用法指南

语境: childcare, history, rhetoric, education

语气: positive

正确说法

• 两河流域与尼罗河流域并称人类早期文明的摇篮，两地均在公元前数千年间就已形成了高度发展的城市聚落、文字体系和社会制度。(Mesopotamia and the Nile Valley are jointly called the cradles of early human civilisation; both had already developed highly advanced urban settlements, writing systems, and social institutions thousands of years before the common era.)
• 这所大学为国家培养了一代又一代的顶尖工程师和科研人才，被誉为中国现代工业和技术创新的重要摇篮之一。(This university has cultivated generation after generation of top engineers and scientific research talent for the nation, and is lauded as one of the important cradles of China's modern industry and technological innovation.)

错误说法

• 他睡在摇篮里工作 — 摇篮 is for infants; figuratively it means the origin or nurturing environment of something, not a working context; for someone working in a nurturing environment say 他在这个团队里得到了充分的培养和发展

起源与历史

摇 = 扌(hand) + 䍃 (phonetic — to rock by hand); 篮 = 竹 (bamboo radical — baskets and cradles were traditionally woven from bamboo) + 监 (to oversee/watch — a vessel that holds and watches over)

文化背景

时代: Classical/Modern

世代: All ages

社会背景: Universal