藩 (fān) — fence, hedge (in compounds like 藩篱); (literary) barrier, screen (in compounds like 藩屏); (historical) vassal state, feudatory (in compounds like 藩属, 藩镇)
Definition
A literary, bound morpheme — it never stands alone. In compounds it means either a physical barrier (fence, hedge) or, historically, a vassal state / feudal territory owing allegiance to China.
bound form
fencehedge (in compounds like 藩篱)(literary) barrierscreen (in compounds like 藩屏)(historical) vassal statefeudatory (in compounds like 藩属, 藩镇)
Examples
- 藩。Nóng mín yòng fān lí wéi zhù le tián dì.The farmer fenced in the fields with a hedge.
- 藩。Zhè ge guó jiā yǐ qián shì zhōng guó de fān shǔ guó.This country was formerly a vassal state of China.
- 藩，。Táng dài de fān zhèn shì lì hěn dà, cháng cháng bù tīng zhōng yāng de mìng lìng.The military governors (藩镇) of the Tang dynasty were very powerful and often disobeyed the central government's orders.
Appears in
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