农场主 (nóng chǎng zhǔ) — farmer (owner or operator of a farm)

Definition

农场主 specifically means the owner/operator of a farm, not a farmhand or hired worker — the 主 ('master, owner') marks them as the proprietor, while a generic 农民 is someone who works the land.

noun
farmer (owner or operator of a farm)
Measure word ·

Examples

  • 农场主
    Zhè wèi nóng chǎng zhǔ jīng yíng zhe yí piàn hěn dà de guǒ yuán.
    This farmer runs a very large orchard.
  • 农场主
    Dāng dì de nóng chǎng zhǔ men shòu dào le zhèng fǔ de bǔ tiē.
    The local farmers received government subsidies.
  • 农场主
    nóng chǎng zhǔ De shōu cheng jīn nián bǐ qù nián hǎo duō le.
    The farmer's harvest is much better this year than last year.

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.

农场farm
nóngfarmingchǎngfield
偏正Modifier + head
zhǔowner

农场 'farm' with 主 'owner' names the person who runs a farm.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 農; 农 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 農 comes from 林 (vegetation) and 辰 (a hoe), showing a hoe among vegetation to remove weeds; the simplified 农 is a later abbreviation.

Open 农 →

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 場; 场 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
earth
Sound part声符shēngfú
yángchǎng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 場 pairs 土 (earth) with 昜 as a sound part; the simplified 场 is a later abbreviation, so its parts do not have that historical role.

Open 场 →

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 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.