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派系 (pài xì) — faction, clique (a subgroup within a larger organization); affiliation with a school or party

Definition

A 派系 is a 'faction' or 'clique' — a competing subgroup inside an organization, often with its own interests. Compared with 集团 (a larger, more formal business or power bloc), 派系 is smaller and usually implies internal rivalry.

noun
factionclique (a subgroup within a larger organization)affiliation with a school or party
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 派系，。
    Gōng sī nèi bù yǒu jǐ gè bù tóng de pài xì, bǐ cǐ jìng zhēng hěn jī liè.
    There are several different factions within the company, competing fiercely with each other.
  • 派系。
    Zhè ge zhèng dǎng yīn wèi pài xì dòu zhēng ér fēn liè le.
    This political party split because of factional infighting.
  • 派系，。
    Xué shù jiè yě yǒu bù tóng de pài xì, gè yǒu gè de zhǔ zhāng.
    The academic world also has different factions, each with its own views.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

派pàifaction
系xìline

派 and 系 both point to a line or grouping, together meaning a faction or affiliation.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
水水shuǐwater; river
Sound part声符shēngfú
𠂢
𠂢𠂢派pài
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

派 is built from 水 (water/river) and 𠂢. 𠂢 gives the sound, and 水 was added later to tell the character apart from the older form.

Open 派 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

系 is made by putting together 手 (hand) and 糸 (silk).

Open 系 →
Appears in
Groups & Organizations

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