Chinese word

状元

Pronunciation

Pinyinzhuàng yuán

Meaning

nountop scholar

Example

他成了当年的状元，全村都来庆祝。tā chéng liǎo dàng nián de zhuàng yuán quán cūn dōu lái qìng zhù

He became that year's top scholar, and the whole village came to celebrate.

More examples

古代的殿试上，皇帝亲自宣布了当朝的状元。gǔ dài de diàn shì shàng huáng dì qīn zì xuān bù liǎo dàng cháo de zhuàng yuán

In the ancient palace examination, the emperor personally announced the top scholar of his reign.

Core concept

The person at the very top of a major examination or competition.

Common phrases

科举状元kē jǔ zhuàng yuán
top scholar in the imperial examination
乡试状元xiāng shì zhuàng yuán
top scholar in the provincial examination
殿试状元diàn shì zhuàng yuán
top scholar in the palace examination

Similar words

高考状元gāo kǎo zhuàng yuán: The highest-scoring student in a given year's national college entrance examination.
第一名dì yì míng: A person or team that takes first place in a competition or examination.
冠军guàn jūn: A person or team that takes first place in a tournament or athletic event.
榜首báng shǒu: A person or entry that stands first on a ranking or results list.

Definition in Chinese

状元原指科举考试中殿试的第一名，后来亦用于称现代重大考试或比赛中的第一名。zhuàng yuán yuán zhǐ kē jú kǎo shì zhōng diàn shì de dì yì míng hòu lái yì yòng yú chēng xiàn dài zhòng dà kǎo shì huò bǐ sài zhōng de dì yì míng

Word origin

状元 (zhuàngyuán, "top scholar") began as the title for the first-place finisher in the imperial palace examination and later extended to modern exams and contests.

Usage tips

Modern Chinese can place the name of an exam before this title, which identifies the exact result being discussed.

Opposites

榜眼báng yǎnsecond-place scholarnoun

Related words

状元及第zhuàng yuán jí dìpass the imperial examination as top scholaridiom