太君 (tài jūn) — (historical) respectful address for the mother of a high official; (historical, derogatory) Japanese officer (term used during the Second Sino-Japanese War)
Definition
Historical term with two opposite senses: a respectful address for a high official's mother, AND a derogatory term Chinese used for Japanese officers during the Second Sino-Japanese War.
noun
(historical) respectful address for the mother of a high official(historical, derogatory) Japanese officer (term used during the Second Sino-Japanese War)
Measure word · 个
Examples
- 《》，太君。《Hóng lóu mèng》 zhōng jiǎ fǔ de lǎo tài tai bèi chēng wéi jiǎ mǔ, yě suàn shì yí wèi tài jūn.In Dream of the Red Chamber, the elderly lady of the Jia mansion is called Grandmother Jia, who can also be considered a kind of Tai Jun.
- ，“太君”，。Lǎo diàn yǐng lǐ, hàn jiān duì zhe rì jūn jūn guān jū gōng hǎn "tài jūn", zhè yí mù ràng guān zhòng yìn xiàng shēn kè.In old movies, traitors bow to Japanese officers and shout 'Tai-jun!'—a scene that leaves a deep impression on the audience.
- ，太君。Zhè bù kàng zhàn jù zhōng, rì běn tài jūn de xíng xiàng bèi kè huà dé shí fēn cán bào.In this anti-Japanese war drama, the Japanese officers are portrayed as extremely brutal.
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.
太 suggests greatness or seniority, and 君 is an honorific for a person; together they name a high official's mother.
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