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权力 (quán lì) — power, authority

Definition

权力 (quánlì) is power or authority to act — held by governments, leaders, or institutions. Contrast with 权利, which is a personal legal or moral right (to vote, to speak freely).

noun
powerauthority
Easily confused

Examples

  • 权力。
    Zhèng fǔ yǒu hěn dà de quán lì.
    The government has a great deal of power.
  • 权力。
    Tā méi yǒu quán lì zuò zhè ge jué dìng.
    He doesn't have the authority to make this decision.
  • 权力。
    Dà jiā dōu yào zūn zhòng lǐng dǎo de quán lì.
    Everyone should respect the leader's authority.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

权quánpower
力lìforce

权 means 'power' and 力 means 'force', so the two meanings combine into authority or 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 權; 权 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
木木mùtree
Sound part声符shēngfú
雚
雚guàn權quán
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 權 shows 木, a tree, with 雚 giving the sound; it named a kind of tree and was used for a standard weight. The simplified 权 is a later shorthand, not the historical shape.

Open 权 →

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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