# Chinese

Pronunciation: say "chy-NEEZ" US /ˌt͡ʃaɪˈniz/, UK /t͡ʃaɪˈniːz/

## Adjective

1. Of, from, or relating to China, or to its people and culture, whether in China or in communities overseas.
   - Simple: From or about China, its people, or their way of life.
   - _Her grandparents still celebrate Chinese New Year with a big family dinner._
   - _Chinese manufacturing has expanded rapidly over the past two decades._
5. Of, from, or related to a language native to Han Chinese people, often used of Chinese characters generally or of Standard Mandarin specifically.
   - Simple: Relating to the languages spoken by Han Chinese people, or to their written characters.
   - _The dictionary lists each Chinese character with its pronunciation._
   - _Many students find Chinese tones difficult to master at first._
9. Attached to a noun to mean a version of the thing named that is different and supposedly odder or more exotic.
   - Simple: Added before a noun to make it mean something different and seen as stranger than usual.
   - _The plan collapsed into a Chinese fire drill, with everyone rushing in different directions._
   - _What started as a simple rumor became Chinese whispers by lunchtime._

## Proper noun

2. The language or group of related languages of the Chinese people, including Mandarin, Cantonese, and others, especially Standard Mandarin, China's official language.
   - Simple: The language spoken in China, especially Mandarin, and related languages such as Cantonese.
   - _The conference offered translation into Chinese and Arabic._
   - _He wrote the entire report in Chinese._
4. The people of China, or people of Chinese descent living in China or overseas, considered as a group.
   - Simple: The people of China, or people whose families come from China.
   - _The Chinese have invested heavily in renewable energy projects nationwide._
   - _Trade negotiators reported that the Chinese were willing to lower tariffs._
7. The logographic writing system, based on characters rather than letters, shared by most Sinitic languages.
   - Simple: The set of written characters used to write Mandarin, Cantonese, and most other Chinese languages.
   - _Japanese borrowed thousands of characters from Chinese, and many are still used in Japanese writing today._
   - _Because Chinese has no alphabet, students learn to write each character stroke by stroke._

## Noun

3. Someone with Chinese ancestry or with China as their country of origin.
   - Simple: A person who is from China or who is of Chinese descent.
   - _Like many overseas Chinese raised in Canada, she spoke English at school and Cantonese at home._
   - _Several Chinese were among the scientists awarded prizes that year._
6. Short for Chinese cuisine: food cooked in any of the styles of China. — Ellipsis of Chinese cuisine.
   - Simple: Short for Chinese cuisine: food cooked in the Chinese style.
   - _We ordered Chinese and watched a movie._
   - _He cooks excellent Chinese at home._
8. Short for Chinese restaurant: a restaurant or shop serving Chinese food ready to eat. *(colloquial, UK)* — Ellipsis of Chinese restaurant (“restaurant serving Chinese cuisine”).
   - Simple: Short for Chinese restaurant. It means a place that serves Chinese food.
   - _They've booked a table at the Chinese for her birthday._
   - _The Chinese down the road does great takeaway._

## Adjective

10. Of lighting equipment, having its barn doors oriented horizontally rather than vertically. *(dated)*
   - Simple: Of a stage or studio light, having its flat side-flaps set in a level, side-to-side position.

## Other meanings

- (adjective) Regarded as exotic, unusual, backward, or disorganized, in the way unfairly attributed to people or things from China.

## Origin

This word was formed from "China" plus the suffix "-ese," under the influence of Portuguese "chinês," and it replaced the older form "Chinish." It is a doublet of "chinois."

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/chinese (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).