天てん文もん台だい

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Common wordFreq.FrequencyTop 50,000

Meanings

noun

astronomical observatory

A facility equipped for observing celestial events. Often used in names of specific observatories.

国こく立りつ天てん文もん台だいは三み鷹たか市しにある。
The National Astronomical Observatory is in Mitaka City.
週しゅう末まつに天てん文もん台だいへ星ほしを見みに行いった。
I went to the observatory to see the stars on the weekend.

See all 19 example sentences ›

Usage patterns

天てん文もん台だいで〈天てん体たい〉を観かん測そくするto observe a celestial body at an observatory
天てん文もん台だいで新あたらしい星ほしを観かん測そくした。
We observed a new star at the observatory.
天てん文もん台だいを訪おとずれるto visit an observatory
夏なつ休やすみに家か族ぞくで天てん文もん台だいを訪おとずれた。
My family visited the observatory during summer vacation.

Kanji

天heavens, sky, imperial
文sentence, literature, style
台pedestal, a stand, counter for machines and vehicles

Related words

観かん測そく所じょ
観測所 is a general term for any observation station (weather, seismic, etc.), while 天文台 specifically refers to a facility for observing celestial objects.

Don't confuse with

プラネタリウム
プラネタリウム is an indoor theater that projects images of the night sky, whereas 天文台 is a real facility with telescopes for observing actual celestial bodies.

Word family

電でん波ぱ天てん文もん台だい
radio astronomy observatory

Built from

天てん文もん+台だい

Etymology

Compound of 天文 (astronomy) and 台 (platform/stand). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the word has been used since the Meiji era to refer to observatories.