时局 (shí jú) — current political situation

Definition

时局 (shíjú) means the 'current political situation,' emphasizing the overall state of affairs at a given moment — broader and more macro-level than 局势 (júshì), which leans toward 'situation/tensions' in a specific event or region.

noun
current political situation

Examples

  • 时局。
    Jīng jì wēi jī duì shí jú chǎn shēng le hěn dà yǐng xiǎng.
    The economic crisis has had a great impact on the current political situation.
  • 时局。
    shí jú De biàn huà ràng hěn duō rén gǎn dào bù ān.
    The changes in the current political situation have made many people feel uneasy.
  • 时局。
    Zhuān jiā men zhèng zài fēn xī shí jú de fā zhǎn qū shì.
    Experts are analyzing the development trend of the current political situation.

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.

时shícurrent time
局júsituation

时 gives the present time, and 局 is the situation, so it means current political situation.

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 時; 时 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
日日rìsun; day
Sound part声符shēngfú
之
之zhī時shí
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 時 pairs 日 (sun/day) with 之 as the part that gives the sound; the simplified 时 is not the form described.

Open 时 →

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
尸尸shī
Sound part声符shēngfú
句
句jù局jú
Same sound today

The shape of 局 pairs 尸, a meaning part, with 句, a sound part.

Open 局 →

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