参谋部 (cān móu bù) — (military) general staff headquarters

Definition

The Chinese term for a military 'general staff' — the headquarters unit that plans operations rather than commands troops in the field.

noun
(military) general staff headquarters
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 。
    Zǒng cān móu bù fù zé zhì dìng zuò zhàn jì huà.
    The General Staff Headquarters is responsible for formulating battle plans.
  • 参谋部。
    Tā zài cān móu bù gōng zuò le hěn duō nián.
    He worked at the general staff headquarters for many years.
  • 参谋部。
    cān móu bù De mìng lìng yǐ jīng xià dá dào gè bù duì.
    The orders from the general staff headquarters have been issued to all units.

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.

参谋staff planning
参cānparticipate谋móuplan
动宾Verb + object
部bùdepartment

参 (participate) and 谋 (plan) give staff advice, and 部 (department) names the headquarters.

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 參; 参 is its simplified writing.

For simplified 参, the story belongs to traditional 參, which combines 晶 (stars), 光 (light), and 彡 (rays) to show the Three Stars; one reading takes 光 as a kneeling person looking up.

Open 参 →

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 謀; 谋 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yán
Sound part声符shēngfú
某
某mǒu謀móu
Same sound today

The traditional form 謀 uses 言 to show it relates to speech and 某 to show its sound; the simplified 谋 is a later shorthand.

Open 谋 →

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
邑邑yì
Sound part声符shēngfú
咅
咅pǒu部bù
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

部 pairs 咅, which gives the sound, with 邑. It originally named a place in today's Gansu.

Open 部 →

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