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民众 (mín zhòng) — the populace; the masses; the common people

Definition

民众 refers to the populace, often in the context of government policy or public welfare. It pairs with 公众 (the public as a collective) and 老百姓 (ordinary people, more colloquial).

noun
the populacethe massesthe common people

Examples

  • 民众。
    Zhè cì xuǎn jǔ dé dào le guǎng dà mín zhòng de zhī chí.
    This election received the support of the broad masses.
  • 民众。
    mín zhòng De jiàn kāng shì zhèng fǔ zuì guān xīn de wèn tí.
    The health of the populace is the government's top concern.
  • 民众。
    Jiào yù zhèng cè yīng dāng fǎn yìng mín zhòng de xū qiú.
    Education policies should reflect the needs of the common people.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

民mínpeople
众zhòngcrowd

民 means people and 众 means a crowd, together denoting the masses.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The early form of 民 shows an eye pierced by a sharp cross-shaped implement, possibly linked to an injured or unclear eye.

Open 民 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 眾; 众 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 眾 shows three people under a sun-like shape, meaning a crowd gathered under the sun; the simplified 众 is a later shorthand.

Open 众 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6Society & Public LifePeople (General)

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