mandarin

noun
🔊/ˈmændərɪn/
🔊/ˈmændərɪn/
jump to other results
  1. [countable] a powerful official of high rank, especially in the civil service政界要员;(尤指)内务官员 synonym bureaucrat
  2. [countable] a government official of high rank in China in the past(旧时)中国政府高级官吏
  3. Mandarin
    [uncountable] the standard form of Chinese, which is the official language of China(中文)普通话
  4. (also mandarin orange)
    [countable] a type of small orange with loose skin that comes off easily柑橘Topics Foodc2
  5. Word Originsenses 1 to 3 late 16th cent. (denoting a Chinese official): from Portuguese mandarim, via Malay from Hindi mantrī ‘counsellor’.sense 4 late 18th cent.: from French mandarine; perhaps related to mandarin ‘high-ranking Chinese official’, the colour of the fruit being similar to the official's yellow robes.