国父 (guó fù) — father of a nation; Father of the Republic (Sun… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Honorific title for the founding leader of a modern republic — in Chinese context it almost always means Sun Yat-sen (孙中山), the father of the Republic of China.

noun

father of a nationFather of the Republic (Sun Yat-sen)

Examples

国父。
Xǔ duō rén dōu rèn wéi sūn zhōng shān xiān sheng shì zhōng guó de guó fù.
Many people consider Dr. Sun Yat-sen to be the father of China.
国父。
Tā bèi zūn chēng wèi yìn dù guó fù.
He is respectfully called the father of India.
国父。
guó fù Zhè ge cí tōng cháng yòng lái zhǐ chuàng jiàn guó jiā de wěi dà rén wù.
The term 'father of a nation' usually refers to the great person who founded a country.

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.

父fùfather

“国” (nation) names whose “父” (father) is meant.

Characters in this word

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 國; 国 is its simplified writing.

囗或國

Meaning part形符xíngfú

囗囗wéiclosure

Sound part声符shēngfú

或

或huò國guó

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 國 uses 囗 to show closure and 或 to give the sound.

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

The shape 父 shows a hand holding a stone blade, referring to a man working with a stone axe.

Appears in

Government & Politics History

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