Definition
曹 (cáo) is primarily a common Chinese surname, but in historical and classical contexts it can refer to a department or office within the imperial bureaucracy, a military unit of about fifty soldiers, or (in legal texts) the plaintiff and defendant. Today, you'll almost always encounter it as a surname; the other senses appear mainly in historical writing.
n.
(surname) Cao(historical) departmentofficeor military unit (of around 50 people)
Examples
- 曹。Wǒ rènshi yí wèi xìng cáo de zuòjiā.I know a writer surnamed Cao.
- 曹，。Hàndài guānfǔ fēn wéi duō gè cáo, tāmen fùzé bùtóng shìwù.Han dynasty government offices were divided into multiple departments, each responsible for different affairs.
- 曹。Gǔshí yì cáo yuē yǒu wǔshí míng shìbīng.In ancient times, a unit had about fifty soldiers.
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