温和派 (wēn hé pài) — moderate faction; moderates

Definition

A political group favoring gradual, non-confrontational methods, contrasted against hardline or radical factions (e.g., 激进派). The 温和 prefix means 'moderate / gentle' and 派 means 'faction or school'.

noun
moderate factionmoderates

Examples

  • 温和派。
    Zhè ge guó jiā de wēn hé pài zhǔ zhāng tōng guò duì huà jiě jué chōng tū.
    The moderate faction in this country advocates resolving conflicts through dialogue.
  • 温和派。
    wēn hé pài Zài yì huì zhōng zhī zhàn shǎo shù xí wèi.
    The moderates only hold a minority of seats in parliament.
  • 温和派。
    Dǎng nèi wēn hé pài hé jī jìn pài fā shēng le jī liè zhēng lùn.
    There was a heated debate between the moderate and radical factions within the party.

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.

温和mild/gentle
温wēnmild和hégentle
联合Side by side
派pàifaction

温 'mild' and 和 'gentle' make 温和, and 派 'faction' names the group.

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 溫; 温 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 溫 is based on an older form 𥁕, which drew a person bathing in a container full of warm water. The simplified 温 is a later variant.

Open 温 →

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
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
禾
禾hé和hé
Same sound today

和 pairs 禾, which gives the sound, with 口 (mouth), the meaning part; the reference connects this shape to harmony.

Open 和 →

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 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.