tể tướng
Definition
- Noun:
- Prime Minister (historical): The highest-ranking official in a feudal monarchy, directly subordinate to the king or emperor, responsible for administering the government and overseeing all other officials.
- Chancellor (historical): A title for the chief administrative officer in some historical East Asian monarchies, equivalent to a prime minister.
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- Tể tướng Lưu Gù là một nhân vật nổi tiếng trong lịch sử Trung Quốc. (Chancellor Liu Yong is a famous figure in Chinese history.)
- Vị tể tướng mới đã đề ra nhiều cải cách quan trọng. (The new prime minister enacted many important reforms.)
- Quyền lực của một vị tể tướng đôi khi có thể sánh ngang với vua. (The power of a chancellor could sometimes rival that of the king.)
Advanced Usage
- The term "tể tướng" is almost exclusively used in a historical context, referring to pre-modern feudal systems, notably in China and Vietnam. In modern political contexts, terms like "thủ tướng" are used for a prime minister.
- It can be used metaphorically in modern, informal contexts to describe someone who holds supreme administrative power within a specific, limited domain (e.g., a company, a household).
- Trong căn bếp này, mẹ tôi là tể tướng. (In this kitchen, my mother is the supreme ruler.)
Variants and Related Words
- Thừa tướng (n): A synonym for "tể tướng," also meaning chancellor or prime minister.
- Tướng quốc (n): Another historical synonym, often used interchangeably with "tể tướng."
- Thủ tướng (n): The modern term for a prime minister in a contemporary government.
Synonyms
- Chancellor (historical context).
- Premier (historical context).
- Chief Minister (historical context).
Related Idioms and Phrases
- Quyền khuynh tể tướng: Literally "power tilting the chancellor," describing someone with immense, overbearing influence.
- Vị quan đó có quyền khuynh tể tướng trong triều đình. (That official held chancellor-tilting power in the court.)