TongTong
Sign in

民主 (mín zhǔ) — (noun) democracy; (adjective) democratic

Definition

Means both 'democracy' (noun, as a political system) and 'democratic' (adjective, describing a process or institution). In political contexts it pairs naturally with 制度, 选举, and 权利.

noun
democracy
adjective
democratic
Easily confused

Examples

  • 民主。
    Zhè ge guó jiā de rén mín fēi cháng zhēn xī mín zhǔ.
    The people of this country greatly cherish democracy.
  • 民主。
    mín zhǔ Zhì dù bǎo zhàng le gōng mín de quán lì.
    The democratic system safeguards citizens' rights.
  • 民主。
    Tā men tōng guò mín zhǔ xuǎn jǔ chǎn shēng le xīn lǐng dǎo.
    They produced a new leader through democratic elections.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
主谓zhǔwèiSubject + predicate

A small sentence frozen into a word: something, and what it does or is.

民mínpeople
主zhǔmaster

民 means people and 主 means master or to rule, together expressing that the people are masters.

Characters in this word

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

The early form of 民 shows an eye pierced by a sharp cross-shaped implement, possibly linked to an injured or unclear eye.

Open 民 →

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

The old forms that became 主 showed a lamp or torch with a flame at the top; other forms showed wood on fire or a spirit tablet.

Open 主 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6HSK 2.0 Level 5Government & Politics5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

Browse more HSK 6 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.