总参谋部 (zǒng cān móu bù) — General Staff Headquarters (of a military, especially the PLA)

Definition

The top military staff command of a national armed force, which plans operations and issues orders. The 总- prefix marks it as the highest-level such headquarters (compared to a unit-level 参谋部).

noun
General Staff Headquarters (of a military, especially the PLA)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 总参谋部。
    zǒng cān móu bù Fù zé zhì dìng quán jūn de zuò zhàn jì huà.
    The General Staff Headquarters is responsible for formulating the entire military's combat plans.
  • 总参谋部。
    Tā zài zǒng cān móu bù gōng zuò le hěn duō nián.
    He worked at the General Staff Headquarters for many years.
  • 总参谋部。
    zǒng cān móu bù Fā bù le zuì xīn de jūn shì yǎn xí mìng lìng.
    The General Staff Headquarters issued the latest military exercise orders.

Origin

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 總; 总 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìrope
Sound part声符shēngfú
悤
悤cōng總zǒng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 總 has 糸, a rope, and 悤 as a sound part; the rope part is for binding together. This account is for 總, not for 总.

Open 总 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 參; 参 is its simplified writing.

For simplified 参, the story belongs to traditional 參, which combines 晶 (stars), 光 (light), and 彡 (rays) to show the Three Stars; one reading takes 光 as a kneeling person looking up.

Open 参 →

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 謀; 谋 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yán
Sound part声符shēngfú
某
某mǒu謀móu
Same sound today

The traditional form 謀 uses 言 to show it relates to speech and 某 to show its sound; the simplified 谋 is a later shorthand.

Open 谋 →

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
邑邑yì
Sound part声符shēngfú
咅
咅pǒu部bù
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

部 pairs 咅, which gives the sound, with 邑. It originally named a place in today's Gansu.

Open 部 →

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