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明君 (míng jūn) — wise monarch, enlightened ruler

Definition

A 明君 is a wise, virtuous ruler — a king or emperor judged by their moral character and good governance. The term carries a positive, idealizing tone; the opposite is 昏君 (a foolish, tyrannical ruler).

noun
wise monarchenlightened ruler

Examples

  • 明君。
    Gǔ dài de rén mín dōu xī wàng yǒu yí wèi míng jūn.
    The people of ancient times all hoped for a wise monarch.
  • 明君，。
    Zài míng jūn de tǒng zhì xià, guó jiā cái néng tài píng.
    Under a wise monarch's rule, the country can enjoy peace.
  • 明君。
    Lì shǐ shàng yǒu xǔ duō míng jūn bèi hòu rén chēng zàn.
    Throughout history, many wise monarchs have been praised by later generations.

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.

明míngwise
君jūnmonarch

明 gives bright or wise, and 君 gives ruler, so the word names an enlightened monarch.

Characters in this word

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

明 combines 日 (sun) and 月 (moon), showing the sun just rising while the moon has not yet set, or two bright objects in the sky, to express brightness.

Open 明 →

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
口口kǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
尹
尹yǐn君jūn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

君 combines 尹 and 口. Early forms were often interchangeable with 尹, and 口 may show commands or simply be decorative.

Open 君 →
Appears in
Government & Politics

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