国力 (guó lì) — national power; national strength

Definition

Refers to a country's overall strength — economic, military, and technological. Distinct from 国家 (the country itself) and from 综合国力, which adds 'comprehensive' to emphasize the total combined capability.

noun
national powernational strength
Easily confused

Examples

  • 国力，。
    Yí gè guó jiā de guó lì bù jǐn tǐ xiàn zài jīng jì shàng, yě tǐ xiàn zài wén huà shàng.
    A country's national power is reflected not only in its economy but also in its culture.
  • 国力。
    Jūn shì guó lì shì guó jiā zōng hé shí lì de zhòng yào zǔ chéng bù fen.
    Military national power is an important component of a country's comprehensive strength.
  • 国力。
    Tí gāo guó lì xū yào cháng qī wěn dìng de fā zhǎn.
    Improving national power requires long-term stable development.

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.

国guócountry
力lìstrength

“国” contributes country and “力” contributes strength, yielding a nation’s power.

Characters in this word

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 國; 国 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
囗囗wéiclosure
Sound part声符shēngfú
或
或huò國guó
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 國 uses 囗 to show closure and 或 to give the sound.

Open 国 →

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

力 is drawn as either an arm bending out from the side of the body or a wooden plough.

Open 力 →

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