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皇上 (huáng shang) — the emperor; Your Majesty (direct address)

Definition

皇上 (huángshang) is the direct, courtly way to address the emperor in person — ‘Your Majesty’. 皇帝 is the neutral noun ‘empereror’ used in narration and history.

noun
the emperorYour Majesty (direct address)
Measure word · 位

Examples

  • 皇上，。
    huáng shang, Chén yǒu yí shì bǐng gào.
    Your Majesty, I have a matter to report.
  • ，皇上。
    Zài gǔ dài, huáng shang xià lìng xiū jiàn le xǔ duō gōng diàn.
    In ancient times, the emperor ordered the construction of many palaces.
  • 皇上。
    Dà chén men duì huáng shang zhōng xīn gěng gěng.
    The ministers were utterly loyal to the emperor.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

皇huángemperor
上shànghonorific

皇上 means the 皇 (emperor), respectfully addressed with 上.

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
𤼽𤼽𤼽
Sound part声符shēngfú
王
王wáng皇huáng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The part 𤼽 originally drew a single peacock feather; 王 was later added to give the sound.

Open 皇 →

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

上 is drawn as a short horizontal line placed above a longer arc, marking a position above that arc.

Open 上 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Identity & Titles

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