开国 (kāi guó) — to found a state, to establish a nation

Definition

Literary/political term meaning to found a new state — used for emperors and revolutionary leaders in formal or historical writing, not everyday speech.

verb

to found a stateto establish a nation

Examples

。
Tā men wèi zhè ge guó jiā kāi le guó.
They founded the state for this country.
1949，开国。
1949 Nián, zhōng huá rén mín gòng hé guó kāi guó le.
In 1949, the People's Republic of China was founded.
开国。
Zhè wèi jiāng jūn shì kāi guó rén wù.
This general is a founding figure.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

开kāifound

国guóstate

开 suggests founding or opening, and 国 is the state; together it means to establish a nation.

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 開; 开 is its simplified writing.

門一廾開

門門méndoor
一一yīlatch and/or wooden pole that shuts a door
廾廾gǒnga pair of hands

The traditional form 開 shows 廾, a pair of hands, and 一, a latch or pole, inside 門, a door: hands opening a latched door. The simplified 开 is a shorthand form, so its parts are not the original pieces.

Open 开 →

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.

囗或國

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 →