帝王 (dì wáng) — emperor, monarch | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

emperormonarch

Measure word · 位

帝王。
Gǔ dài zhōng guó de dì wáng yōng yǒu zhì gāo wú shàng de quán lì.
Emperors of ancient China possessed supreme power.
帝王。
Zhè wèi dì wáng bān bù le xīn fǎ lìng.
This monarch issued a new decree.
帝王。
Lì shǐ shàng xǔ duō dì wáng dōu xiū jiàn le hóng wěi de gōng diàn.
Many emperors in history built magnificent palaces.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

帝dìemperor

帝 and 王 are both royal titles, so together they refer broadly to a monarch or emperor.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

丄丄shàngup; above

Sound part声符shēngfú

朿

朿cì帝dì

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

帝 originally drew a flower calyx, the part joining blossom to stem. The 丄 and 朿 breakdown is mistaken.

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

The shape of 王 comes from a picture of a ritual axe, an object kept near a throne and connected with royal power.

Appears in