empress's palace; queen's palace; harem quarters
Refers to the physical palace building or quarters where the empress or queen resides, often within a larger imperial/royal complex.
The empress's palace was located deep within the Forbidden City.
Metonymic use: the palace stands for the person. Refers to the empress or queen herself, especially in historical or literary contexts.
The queen herself led the troops onto the battlefield.
empress's residence; empress's palace · empress
Compound of 后 (empress, queen) and 宮 (palace, shrine). The metonymic sense 'empress/queen' developed from the palace meaning.