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主角 (zhǔ jué) — leading role, lead, protagonist

Definition

主角 is the main character in a story, film, or play. Use 主演 for the actor who plays that role; 主人公 is a more formal written synonym, common for novels.

noun
leading roleleadprotagonist
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 主角。
    Zhè bù diàn yǐng de zhǔ jué shì yí wèi zhù míng yǎn yuán.
    The lead of this movie is a famous actor.
  • 主角。
    Zhè bù huà jù de zhǔ jué yǎn dé fēi cháng jīng cǎi.
    The lead of this play performed very brilliantly.
  • 主角。
    Zhè bù xiǎo shuō de zhǔ jué shì yí gè yǒng gǎn de shào nián.
    The protagonist of this novel is a brave teenager.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

主zhǔmain
角jiǎorole

主 means main and 角 means role, making the main role.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The old forms that became 主 showed a lamp or torch with a flame at the top; other forms showed wood on fire or a spirit tablet.

Open 主 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The form 角 is a picture of a horn.

Open 角 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6Film & Theater3000 Most Frequent Chinese Words5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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