美麗

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 美麗 is a noun and na-adjective read びれい, a formal word for something extremely beautiful, ornate, or exquisite.
• Basic usage: Use 美麗な挿絵 before a noun and 美麗を極める for beauty brought to an extreme.
  • 展示された写本には美麗な挿絵が添えられている。 describes a displayed manuscript accompanied by beautiful, ornate illustrations; 美麗を極めた宮殿の装飾に目を奪われた。 describes being captivated by palace decorations of exquisite beauty.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• 美麗な挿絵
  • The linking form な is required when this na-adjective directly modifies a noun.
• 美麗を極める
  • を極める emphasizes that the beauty or ornamentation reaches an extreme degree.
• 目を奪われる
  • This does not mean literal theft; it means being so captivated that one's gaze is held.