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自主权 (zì zhǔ quán) — autonomy; right to self-determination; sovereignty (of a country or region)

Definition

The right or power to make one's own decisions — used for both personal/medical autonomy and a region or country's sovereignty.

noun
autonomyright to self-determinationsovereignty (of a country or region)

Examples

  • 自主权。
    Měi gè guó jiā dōu yǒu quán wéi hù zì jǐ de zì zhǔ quán.
    Every country has the right to defend its own sovereignty.
  • 自主权。
    Gōng sī huò dé le gèng duō de jīng yíng zì zhǔ quán.
    The company obtained more operational autonomy.
  • ，自主权。
    Bìng rén yǒu quán duì zì jǐ de zhì liáo zuò chū jué dìng, zhè shì huàn zhě de zì zhǔ quán.
    Patients have the right to make decisions about their own treatment — this is the patient's autonomy.

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.

自主self-governance
自zìoneself主zhǔtake charge
主谓Subject + predicate
权quánright

自 (oneself) 主 (take charge) gives self-governance, and 权 names that power as a right.

Characters in this word

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

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

自 originally drew a nose. It was borrowed purely for its sound to write 自, so the picture and the meaning are unrelated.

Open 自 →

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

The old forms that became 主 showed a lamp or torch with a flame at the top; other forms showed wood on fire or a spirit tablet.

Open 主 →

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 →
Appears in
Government & PoliticsRights & Citizenship

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