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Shangri-la

Shangri-la

7 9.8
An imaginary perfect, peaceful place where people feel very happy and safe
  • noun
  • /ˈʃæŋɡrəˌlɑː/
  • Literature
translation icon : Shangri-la
  • We have a long way to go, but I assure you, we will reach the Himalayas and find this lost civilization of yetis, this Shangri-La.
  • kingdom of Shangri-la
  • find our Shangri-la

You know, it's like to some people it's the Shangri-La of, you know, test bed aerospace programs, right?

Examples

  • You're needed in the outside world where the problems are far more urgent and pressing than they are here in Shangri-La.

  • This is Shangri-La, folks.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • We all get to stay here in Little Shangri-La.

  • So, this is it, Shangri-La.

  • To get to this place called Shangri-La.

  • Paradise is close ahead, the Shangri-La, the promised land.

  • In Richard Conway's mind, Shangri-La represents the ultimate way of life.

  • Remember Shangri-La, where living long is won at a cost - you can stay young only within its borders, shriveling into old age as soon as you pass back into the world.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • It was my Shangri-La.

  • For many travelers, discovering a hidden beach feels like finding their own Shangri-la, a spot of peace and beauty away from the chaos of daily life.

Synonyms

heaven
vsShangri-la
237 1.0

A very happy and peaceful state

emphasizes calm contentment and peace rather than intense delight
paradise
vsShangri-la
192 4.0

A place or state of perfect happiness and peace

refers to a specific fictional place rather than a general term
Utopia
vsShangri-la
15 7.9

An imagined perfect place where people live together happily

focuses on a perfect place of personal happiness and peace
promised land
vsShangri-la
14 6.0

A place or situation someone hopes will bring them happiness after a long struggle

is an imagined perfect refuge rather than a goal reached after struggle
nirvana
vsShangri-la
5 7.9

A very peaceful happy state with no worry or pain

focuses on a pleasant imaginary place rather than inner release
paradise on earth
vsShangri-la
2 4.2

A very beautiful place where people feel happy and peaceful

is an imagined ideal rather than an actual worldly location
Eden
vsShangri-la
1 6.8

A place or state that has great happiness and peace

is a named imaginary location with perfect happiness and peace
lotusland
vsShangri-la
  • Literature
1 9.9

A place where people enjoy life and ignore practical problems

is an idealized peaceful place without implied selfish indulgence
lotus land
vsShangri-la
  • Literature
9.9

A peaceful place like a dream where people relax and forget their problems

is a peaceful ideal without implying escape or indulgence

How Peaceful

Shangri-la
  • Literature
7 9.8
retreat
69 4.2
village
1.0
bustling
9 4.1
war zone
28 4.8

Surface Forms

Shangri-la singular
Shangri-las plural

Etymology

Shangri-la was made up by the writer James Hilton for his 1933 novel 'Lost Horizon' as the name of a hidden valley in the Himalayas where people live long lives of peace and 'perfect happiness'. So today a Shangri-la means any 'paradise' or perfect, peaceful place someone dreams of.