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"20th century" Chinese-English Dictionary

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Chinese Pinyin Translation
二十世纪 二十世紀 èr shí shì jì 20th century
Chinese Pinyin Translation
他 tā (third-person singular) (since the early 20th century, usu. male) he / him / his / (bound form) other / another / some other (as in 他日[ta1ri4] and 他人[ta1ren2]) syn
年代 nián dài a decade of a century (e.g. the Sixties) / age / era / period / CL:個|个[ge4] syn
世纪 世紀 shì jì century / CL:個|个[ge4] syn
百年 bǎi nián hundred years / century / lifetime syn
罗宾汉 羅賓漢 luó bīn hàn Robin Hood (English 12th century folk hero)
小雪 xiǎo xuě Xiaoxue or Lesser Snow, 20th of the 24 solar terms 二十四節氣|二十四节气 22nd November-6th December
花木兰 花木蘭 huā mù lán Hua Mulan, legendary woman warrior (c. fifth century), Northern dynasties folk hero recorded in Sui and Tang literature
近代 jìn dài the not-very-distant past / modern times, excluding recent decades / (in the context of Chinese history) the period from the Opium Wars until the May 4th Movement (mid-19th century to 1919) / capitalist times (pre-1949) syn
皮蛋 pí dàn century egg / preserved egg syn
中叶 中葉 zhōng yè mid- (e.g. mid-century) / middle period syn
活佛 huó fó Living Buddha / title of Mongolian Lamas from 17th century syn
世纪末 世紀末 shì jì mò end of the century
国语 國語 guó yǔ Chinese language (Mandarin), emphasizing its national nature / Chinese as a primary or secondary school subject / Chinese in the context of the Nationalist Government / Guoyu, book of historical narrative c. 10th-5th century BC syn
近代史 jìn dài shǐ modern history (for China, from the Opium Wars until the fall of the Qing Dynasty, i.e. mid-19th to early 20th century)
三国 三國 sān guó Three Kingdoms period (220-280) in Chinese history / any of several Three Kingdoms periods in Korean history, esp. from 1st century AD to unification under Silla 新羅|新罗[Xin1luo2] in 658
租界 zū jiè foreign concession, an enclave occupied by a foreign power (in China in the 19th and 20th centuries) syn
亚齐 亞齊 yà qí Aceh province of Indonesia in northwest Sumatra / Aceh sultanate 16th-19th century
新世纪 新世紀 xīn shì jì 21st century / New Century (commonly used name)
侵华 侵華 qīn huá to invade China (referring to 19th century imperialist powers and Japan)
上世纪 上世紀 shàng shì jì last century
二十一世纪 二十一世紀 èr shí yī shì jì 21st century
客家 kè jiā Hakka ethnic group, a subgroup of the Han that in the 13th century migrated from northern China to the south syn
下半身 xià bàn shēn lower half of one's body / Lower Body (Chinese poetry movement of the early 21st century) syn
无厘头 無厘頭 wú lí tóu silly talk or "mo lei tau" (Cantonese), genre of humor emerging from Hong Kong late in the 20th century
倭寇 wō kòu Japanese pirates (in 16th and 17th century)
明末 míng mò late Ming / first half of the 17th century
战国时代 戰國時代 zhàn guó shí dài the Warring States period (475-221 BC) / Japanese Warring States period (15th-17th century)
吐蕃 tǔ bō Tubo or Tufan, old name for Tibet / the Tibetan Tubo dynasty 7th-11th century AD / also pr. [Tu3 fan1]
摩尼 mó ní Mani (3rd century AD), Persian prophet and founder of Manichaeism
晚清 wǎn qīng the late Qing / late 19th and early 20th century China
下西洋 xià xī yáng to sail west (from China) (used in reference to the 15th century voyages of Zheng He 鄭和|郑和[Zheng4 He2] to regions bordering the Indian Ocean)
妲己 dá jǐ Daji (c. 11th century BC), concubine of the last Shang dynasty king Zhou Xin 紂辛|纣辛[Zhou4 Xin1]
商代 shāng dài the prehistoric Shang dynasty (c. 16th-11th century BC)
谷雨 穀雨 gǔ yǔ Guyu or Grain Rain, 6th of the 24 solar terms 二十四節氣|二十四节气 20th April-4th May
李冰 lǐ bīng Li Bing (c. 3rd century BC) hydraulic engineer who designed the Dujiangyan 都江堰[Du1 jiang1 yan4] irrigation system in Sichuan
反清 fǎn qīng anti-Qing / refers to the revolutionary movements in late 19th and early 20th century leading up to 1911 Xinhai Revolution 辛亥革命[Xin1 hai4 Ge2 ming4]
尔雅 爾雅 ěr yǎ "Erya" or "The Ready Guide", first extant Chinese dictionary, c. 3rd century BC, with glossaries on classical texts
唐三藏 táng sān zàng Tripitaka, the central character of the 16th century novel "Journey to the West" 西遊記|西游记[Xi1you2Ji4], based on the monk Xuanzang 玄奘[Xuan2zang4] (602-664)
立夏 lì xià Lixia or Start of Summer, 7th of the 24 solar terms 二十四節氣|二十四节气 5th-20th May
大寒 dà hán Great Cold, 24th of the 24 solar terms 二十四節氣|二十四节气 20th January-3rd February
惊蛰 驚蟄 jīng zhé Jingzhe or Insects Wake, 3rd of the 24 solar terms 二十四節氣|二十四节气 6th-20th March
不平等条约 不平等條約 bù píng děng tiáo yuē (term coined c. 1920s) unequal treaty – a treaty between China and one or more aggressor nations (including Russia, Japan and various Western powers) which imposed humiliating conditions on China (in the 19th and early 20th centuries)
半世纪 半世紀 bàn shì jì half century
张骞 張騫 zhāng qiān Zhang Qian (-114 BC), Han dynasty explorer of 2nd century BC
甲骨 jiǎ gǔ tortoise shells and animal bones used for divination in the Shang Dynasty (c. 16th to 11th century BC) / oracle bones
徐福 xú fú Xu Fu (3rd century BC), Qin dynasty court necromancer
列子 liè zǐ Lie Zi, Daoist author, said to be early Warring States period 戰國|战国[Zhan4 guo2] / Daoist text in eight chapters, said to be by Lie Zi, probably compiled during WeiJin times 魏晉|魏晋[Wei4 Jin4] (3rd century AD)
二十四史 èr shí sì shǐ the Twenty-Four Histories (25 or 26 in modern editions), collection of books on Chinese dynastic history from 3000 BC till 17th century / fig. a long and complicated story
千字文 qiān zì wén Thousand Character Classic, 6th century poem used as a traditional reading primer
蔺相如 藺相如 lìn xiāng rú Ling Xiangru (dates unknown, 3rd century BC), famous statesman of Zhao 趙國|赵国
广雅 廣雅 guǎng yǎ earliest extant Chinese encyclopedia from Wei of the Three Kingdoms, 3rd century, modeled on Erya 爾雅|尔雅[Er3 ya3], 18150 entries
松花蛋 sōng huā dàn century egg / preserved egg syn
芒种 芒種 máng zhòng Mangzhong or Grain in Beard, 9th of the 24 solar terms 二十四節氣|二十四节气 6th-20th June
初叶 初葉 chū yè early part (of a decade, century etc) / the first years
梗 gěng branch / stem / stalk / CL:根[gen1] / to block / to hinder / (neologism that evolved from 哏[gen2], initially in Taiwan, during the first decade of the 21st century) memorable creative idea (joke, catchphrase, meme, neologism, witty remark etc) / prominent feature of a creative work (punchline of a joke, trope in a drama, special ingredient in a dish, riff in a pop song etc) syn
西里尔 西里爾 xī lǐ ěr Cyril (name) / Saint Cyril, 9th century Christian missionary / Cyrillic
禹 yǔ Yu the Great (c. 21st century BC), mythical leader who tamed the floods / surname Yu
未来派 未來派 wèi lái pài Futurism (artistic and social movement of the 20th century)
肉蒲团 肉蒲團 ròu pú tuán The Carnal Prayer Mat, Chinese erotic novel from 17th century, usually attributed to Li Yu 李漁|李渔[Li3 Yu3]
卜辞 卜辭 bǔ cí oracle inscriptions of the Shang Dynasty (16th-11th century BC) on tortoiseshells or animal bones syn
舜 shùn Shun (c. 23rd century BC), mythical sage and leader
安南 ān nán Annam (Tang Dynasty protectorate located in what is now northern Vietnam) / Annam (autonomous kingdom located in what is now northern Vietnam, 10th-15th century) / Annam (central part of Vietnam during the French colonial period) / old name for Vietnam / Annan District in Tainan 臺南|台南[Tai2 nan2], Taiwan / Kofi Annan (1938-2018), UN secretary-general 1997-2006
左思 zuǒ sī Zuo Si (3rd century), Jin dynasty writer and poet
杏林 xìng lín forest of apricot trees / (fig.) honorific term for fine doctor (cf Dr Dong Feng 董奉[Dong3 Feng4], 3rd century AD, asked his patients to plant apricot trees instead of paying fees)
张大千 張大千 zhāng dà qiān Chang Dai-chien or Zhang Daqian (1899-1983), one of the greatest Chinese artists of the 20th century
乌鲁克恰提 烏魯克恰提 wū lǔ kè qià tí Wuqia county in Xinjiang / name of county in Xinjiang from early 20th century now called Wuqia 烏恰縣|乌恰县
乌鲁克恰提县 烏魯克恰提縣 wū lǔ kè qià tí xiàn Wuqia county in Xinjiang / name of county in Xinjiang from early 20th century now called Wuqia 烏恰縣|乌恰县
未来主义 未來主義 wèi lái zhǔ yì Futurism (artistic and social movement of the 20th century)
尼雅 ní yǎ Niya, ancient kingdom near Khotan in Xinjiang, 1st century BC-4th century AD
启蛰 啟蟄 qǐ zhé Waking from Hibernation / old variant of 驚蟄|惊蛰[Jing1 zhe2], Insects Wake, 3rd of the 24 solar terms 二十四節氣|二十四节气[er4 shi2 si4 jie2 qi5] 6th-20th March
天穿日 tiān chuān rì a Hakka festival held on the 20th day of the first lunar month
东亚病夫 東亞病夫 dōng yà bìng fū (derog.) the sick man of Asia (term used in the West in the late 19th and early 20th centuries to refer to China in its weakened state after the Opium Wars)
白陶 bái táo white pottery (of Shang Dynastry 16-11th century BC)
大禹 dà yǔ Yu the Great (c. 21st century BC) mythical leader who tamed the floods
叙利亚文 敘利亞文 xù lì yà wén Syriac language (from c. 2nd century BC) / the Syriac script
埃居 āi jū écu (French coin, discontinued by the end of the 18th century)
广韵 廣韻 guǎng yùn Guangyun, Chinese rime dictionary 韻書|韵书[yun4 shu1] from 11th century, containing 26,194 single-character entries
吐谷浑 吐谷渾 tǔ yù hún Tuyuhun, nomadic people related to the Xianbei 鮮卑|鲜卑[Xian1 bei1] / a state in Qinghai in 4th-7th century AD
新罗 新羅 xīn luó Silla, Korean kingdom 57 BC-935 AD / one of the Korean Three Kingdoms from 1st century AD, defeating its rivals Paikche 百濟|百济[Bai3 ji4] and Koguryo 高句麗|高句丽[Gao1 gou1 li2] around 660 in alliance with Tang China / unified Silla 658-935
张旭 張旭 zhāng xù Zhang Xu (probably early 8th century), Tang dynasty poet and calligrapher, most famous for his grass script 草書|草书
世纪末年 世紀末年 shì jì mò nián final years of the century
人间喜剧 人間喜劇 rén jiān xǐ jù La Comédie humaine, series of novels by 19th century French novelist Honoré de Balzac 巴爾扎克|巴尔扎克[Ba1 er3 zha1 ke4]
介之推 jiè zhī tuī Jie Zhitui (7th century BC), legendary selfless subject of Duke Wen of Jin 晉文公|晋文公[Jin4 Wen2 gong1], in whose honor the Qingming festival 清明[Qing1 ming2] (Pure brightness or tomb-sweeping festival) is said to have been initiated
傅说 傅說 fù shuō Fu Shuo (c. 14th century BC), legendary sage and principal minister of Shang ruler Wu Ding
元末 yuán mò final years of Yuan dynasty (1279-1368) / mid 14th century
元末明初 yuán mò míng chū late Yuan and early Ming / mid 14th century
刁藩都 diāo fān dōu Diophantus of Alexandria (3rd century AD), Greek mathematician
半个世纪 半個世紀 bàn ge shì jì half a century
南诏国 南詔國 nán zhào guó Nanzhao, 8th and 9th century kingdom in Yunnan, at times allied with Tang against Tibetan Tubo pressure
同文馆 同文館 tóng wén guǎn Tongwen Guan, 19th century college that trained translators for China's diplomatic corps, established in Beijing in 1862 and absorbed by the Imperial University in 1902
吐蕃王朝 tǔ bō wáng cháo Tibetan Tubo Dynasty 7th-11th century AD
吞米桑布札 tūn mǐ sāng bù zhá Tunmi Sanghuzha (6th century AD), originator of the Tibetan script
唐末 táng mò late Tang period (9th century)
商纣王 商紂王 shāng zhòu wáng King Zhou of Shang (11th century BC), notorious as a cruel tyrant
喀拉汗国 喀拉汗國 kā lā hán guó Karakhan Dynasty of central Asia, 8th-10th century
喀拉汗王朝 kā lā hán wáng cháo Karakhan dynasty of central Asia, 8th-10th century
基辅罗斯 基輔羅斯 jī fǔ luó sī Kievan Rus', East Slavic state that reached its peak in the early to mid-11th century
大明历 大明曆 dà míng lì the 5th century Chinese calendar established by Zu Chongzhi 祖沖之|祖冲之
孔丛子 孔叢子 kǒng cóng zǐ the K'ung family Masters' anthology, collection of dialogues between Confucius and his disciples, possibly forged in third century by Wang Su 王肅|王肃[Wang2 Su4]
The four tones The four tones of Mandarin Pitch over time: tone 1 high and level (red), tone 2 rising (orange), tone 3 falling then rising (green), tone 4 falling (blue). tone 1 tone 2 tone 3 tone 4 Time Pitch

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