Definition

1. Noun:
   • His Majesty (the ruling king): An archaic, formal, and respectful term used to refer to the reigning monarch, specifically the king. It is a compound noun formed from "kim" (now, present) and "thượng" (above, superior), literally meaning "the superior one of the present time."

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Các đại thần đều quỳ lạy kim thượng. (All the mandarins knelt and bowed to His Majesty.)
  • Kim thượng đã ra chiếu chỉ mới. (His Majesty has issued a new royal decree.)

Advanced Usage

• The term "kim thượng" is strictly historical and literary. It is found in classical Vietnamese texts, historical novels, dramas, and when recounting feudal history.
• It conveys the highest level of deference and is used in third-person narration or by subjects when speaking about the king, not to him directly. Direct address would use terms like "bệ hạ" (Your Majesty).

Variants and Related Words

• Bệ hạ (n): Your Majesty. (Used for direct address to the king or emperor.)
• Hoàng thượng (n): His/Her Majesty the Emperor; the Emperor. (A slightly more common historical term for the sovereign.)
• Quốc vương (n): The king (of a nation). (A formal term for "king.")
• Thánh thượng (n): His Sacred Majesty. (An even more honorific and archaic term.)

Synonyms

• Nhà vua (n): The king. (A more general and common term.)
• Quân vương (n): The monarch. (A literary term.)

Related Phrases

• Triều đình kim thượng: The court of His Majesty.
• Long thể kim thượng: The royal health of His Majesty (a set phrase used in inquiries about the king's well-being).

Notes on Usage

• "Kim thượng" is obsolete in modern Vietnamese. It belongs to the lexicon of the feudal period and is not used in contemporary speech or writing except for historical or artistic purposes.
• As a compound noun, it functions as a single, fixed unit of meaning. Its components ("kim" and "thượng") are not used independently in this context.

1. (cũ) His Mjesty (the ruling king)