启蒙运动 (qǐ méng yùn dòng) — the Enlightenment (European philosophical movement of the 18th century)

Definition

A proper noun referring to the 18th-century European intellectual movement that championed reason, liberty, and equality — not a general term for 'enlightenment' (which is just 启蒙).

noun
the Enlightenment (European philosophical movement of the 18th century)

Examples

  • 启蒙运动。
    qǐ méng yùn dòng Duì ōu zhōu jìn dài sī xiǎng de fā zhǎn chǎn shēng le shēn yuǎn yǐng xiǎng.
    The Enlightenment had a profound impact on the development of modern European thought.
  • 启蒙运动。
    Fú ěr tài shì qǐ méng yùn dòng shí qī zuì zhòng yào de sī xiǎng jiā zhī yī.
    Voltaire was one of the most important thinkers of the Enlightenment period.
  • 启蒙运动、，。
    qǐ méng yùn dòng Tí chàng lǐ xìng, zì yóu hé píng děng, yǐng xiǎng zhì jīn.
    The Enlightenment advocated reason, liberty, and equality, and its influence continues to this day.

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.

启蒙enlighten
启qǐopen蒙méngignorance
动宾Verb + object
运动movement
运yùnmove动dòngmove
联合Side by side

The meanings of 启蒙, opening ignorance, and 运动, movement, combine to name the Enlightenment.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 啟; 启 is its simplified writing.

For 启, the traditional form 啟 comes from an earlier shape with 戶 (door) and 又 (hand), showing a hand opening a door.

Open 启 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
艹Written in full as艸cǎograss
Sound part声符shēngfú
冡
冡měng蒙méng
Same sound today

蒙 combines 艹 (grass) with 冡, which supplies the sound.

Open 蒙 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 運; 运 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辵辵chuòmotion
Sound part声符shēngfú
軍
軍jūn運yùn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 運 combines 辵, meaning motion, with 軍 to give the sound; the simplified 运 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the historical components.

Open 运 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 動; 动 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
力力lìstrength
Sound part声符shēngfú
重
重zhòng動dòng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 動 uses 力 (strength) and 重 as a sound part; 重 refers to a heavy bag ready to be moved by a human. This note is about 動, not 动.

Open 动 →

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