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万岁 (wàn suì) — (noun) long live (used as a cheer); (historical) the emperor / Your Majesty

Definition

Used as a fixed cheer 'long live!' (often shouted in public, e.g. 万岁万岁万万岁). Historically also a respectful way to address the emperor.

noun
long live (used as a cheer)(historical) the emperor / Your Majesty

Examples

  • 万岁！
    Zhōng huá rén mín gòng hé guó wàn suì!
    Long live the People's Republic of China!
  • “万岁”。
    Gǔ dài bǎi xìng jiàn dào huáng dì yào hǎn "wàn suì".
    In ancient times, commoners had to shout 'Long live the emperor' when they saw him.
  • “万岁”。
    Zhè xiē wén wù shàng kè zhe "wàn suì" èr zì.
    These artifacts are engraved with the characters 'long live.'

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.

万wànten thousand
岁suìyears

万 (ten thousand) quantifies 岁 (years), expressing a wish for long life.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 萬; 万 is its simplified writing.

For 万, the form 萬 was originally a picture of a scorpion, later borrowed for its sound to write 'ten thousand'; the scorpion picture is unrelated to that number.

Open 万 →

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 歲; 岁 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
步步bù
Sound part声符shēngfú
戉
戉yuè歲suì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In 歲, the part 步 shows movement over time, and 戉 gives the sound; this explanation is about 歲, not the simplified 岁.

Open 岁 →
Appears in
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