paradise
paradise — noun
1. somewhere or some situation that feels wonderful because everything you want is
somewhere or some situation that feels wonderful because everything you want is there — for example, a quiet beach for a tired traveller, or a city full of bookshops for a reader.
For Lina, the small island near Penghu was a quiet paradise after her busy year.
noun + for + person
Ximending is a paradise for teenagers who love street food and fashion shops.
a paradise for [group of people]
The old library felt like paradise to Marcus on rainy afternoons.
With its warm sand and clear water, the beach was a swimmer's paradise.
Grandma's kitchen at New Year was paradise for every hungry child in the family.
- haven
stresses safety and shelter; paradise stresses delight
- utopia
imagined ideal society, more abstract and political
- heaven on earth
informal phrase, often hyperbolic
文法句型
a paradise for [people / activity]
[noun]'s paradise
用法筆記
Often appears with 'a' and a modifier naming who or what it's perfect for: 'a shopper's paradise', 'a paradise for hikers'. Distinguish from sense 2 (the religious afterlife): this sense names an earthly place or feeling, not heaven.
常見錯誤
2. in many religions, the happy place where the souls of good people are believed t
in many religions, the happy place where the souls of good people are believed to live forever after death.
The old priest told the children that kind people go to paradise after they die.
go to paradise (no article)
At the funeral, Aunt Rosa said quietly that her brother was now in paradise.
in paradise (preposition + noun)
Many poems from that century picture paradise as a garden full of light and music.
In this faith, only those who help the poor are promised a place in paradise.
- heaven
the most common everyday word; paradise sounds more poetic or scriptural
- the hereafter
general term for life after death, neutral about the destination
- hell
the place of punishment in the same religious systems
文法句型
go to paradise
in paradise
用法筆記
Typically used without 'the' or 'a' when meaning the afterlife: 'go to paradise', 'in paradise'. Often capitalised as 'Paradise' in religious writing. Distinguish from sense 1, which can be any earthly place that feels perfect.
常見錯誤
3. in the Bible, the beautiful garden where the first man and woman, Adam and Eve,
in the Bible, the beautiful garden where the first man and woman, Adam and Eve, were said to have lived before they were sent away by God.
The painting shows Adam and Eve walking together in paradise among bright flowers and tame animals.
in paradise (Eden reference)
After they ate the forbidden fruit, the story says, Adam and Eve were driven out of paradise.
driven out of paradise
Stained glass at the church showed an angel guarding the gate of paradise with a fiery sword.
Many medieval poets imagined paradise as a green garden at the top of a high mountain.
- Eden
the more direct biblical name for the same garden
- the Garden of Eden
full formal name; paradise is the shorter literary form
文法句型
the Garden of Paradise
expelled from paradise
用法筆記
Restricted to Biblical or literary contexts referring specifically to Eden. Distinguish from sense 2: sense 2 is where good souls go after death; sense 3 is the original garden on earth where humans first lived. Often interchangeable with 'Eden' or 'the Garden of Eden'.