hsien
Americannoun
-
(in popular Chinese religion) one of a group of benevolent spirits promoting good in the world.
-
(in China) a county or district.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of hsien
First recorded in 1965–70; from Chinese (Wade-Giles) hsien1, (Pinyin) xiān “hermit, wizard”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Chen Li-fu traveled with speed and silence over south and central China, met with secret party leaders and hsien magistrates, testing the loyal, liquidating the disloyal.
From Time Magazine Archive
By the courtesy of the Mandarin Li, two men were detailed to "sung" me—to accompany me, that is—and take the responsibility for my safe delivery at the next hsien.
From An Australian in China Being the Narrative of a Quiet Journey Across China to Burma by Morrison, George Ernest
A flourishing hsien city stood in the centre of a populous country.
From Myths and Legends of China by Werner, E. T. C. (Edward Theodore Chalmers)
The respective autonomies of the individual, the clan, the hsien and the nation are accounted for; the nature of the democratic nationalist state becomes clear.
From The Political Doctrines of Sun Yat-sen: An Exposition of the San Min Chu I by Linebarger, Paul Myron Anthony
Military conquest was to yield swiftly to tutelage; tutelage was to lead, hsien by hsien, into democracy.
From The Political Doctrines of Sun Yat-sen: An Exposition of the San Min Chu I by Linebarger, Paul Myron Anthony
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
