Definition

Noun: 1. Court: The central governing body and royal establishment of a monarchical state, consisting of the monarch, high-ranking officials, nobles, and advisors, where state affairs are administered and ceremonial functions are held. 2. Imperial/Royal Court: Specifically refers to the physical and administrative center of power in a historical Vietnamese or other East Asian monarchy.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Các quan trong triều đình bàn luận việc quốc sự. (The officials in the court discussed matters of state.)
  • Triều đình nhà Nguyễn đóng đô ở Huế. (The imperial court of the Nguyễn dynasty was located in Huế.)
  • Sứ thần nước ngoài được đưa đến yết kiến triều đình. (Foreign envoys were brought to have an audience with the royal court.)

Advanced Usage

• The term is primarily historical, referring to pre-modern, feudal monarchical systems (e.g., – feudal court).
• It can be used metaphorically in modern contexts to describe a powerful, hierarchical, and often bureaucratic center of authority, sometimes with a critical tone.

Variants and Related Words

• Triều chính (n): Court politics; the administration and political affairs of the royal court.
• Triều thần (n): Court officials; mandarins serving in the royal court.
• Triều đại (n): Dynasty; a historical period ruled by a particular family line of emperors/kings.

Synonyms

• Court: The sovereign and his/her entourage and advisors as a governing power.
• Royal Court / Imperial Court: The establishment surrounding a king or emperor.
• Regime (in a historical context): A particular government, especially an authoritarian one, though this is a broader term.

Related Idioms

• Trung với vua, hiếu với nước: (Loyalty to the king, piety to the country) – A Confucian ideal describing the duty of a court official.
• Phép vua thua lệ làng: (The king's law yields to village customs) – A saying highlighting the sometimes-limited reach of the central court's authority over local traditions.

noun

1. court