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mandarin

 - 5 dictionary results

man⋅da⋅rin

  [man-duh-rin]
–noun
1. (in the Chinese Empire) a member of any of the nine ranks of public officials, each distinguished by a particular kind of button worn on the cap.
2. (initial capital letter) the standard Chinese language.
3. (initial capital letter) a northern Chinese dialect, esp. as spoken in and around Beijing.
4. a small, spiny citrus tree, Citrus reticulata, native to China, bearing lance-shaped leaves and flattish, orange-yellow to deep-orange loose-skinned fruit, some varieties of which are called tangerines.
5. any of several plants belonging to the genus Disporum or Streptopus, of the lily family, as S. roseus (rose mandarin) or D. lanuginosum (yellow mandarin), having drooping flowers and red berries.
6. an influential or powerful government official or bureaucrat.
7. a member of an elite or powerful group or class, as in intellectual or cultural milieus: the mandarins of the art world.
–adjective
8. of or pertaining to a mandarin or mandarins.
9. elegantly refined, as in language or taste.
Use mandarin in a Sentence
Origin:
1580–90; < Pg mandarim, alter. (by assoc. with mandar to order) of Malay məntəri < Hindi mantrī, Skt mantrin councilor

tan⋅ge⋅rine

  [tan-juh-reen, tan-juh-reen]
–noun
1. Also called mandarin, mandarin orange. any of several varieties of mandarin, cultivated widely, esp. in the U.S.
2. deep orange; reddish orange.
–adjective
3. of the color tangerine; reddish-orange.
Origin:
Tang(i)er + -ine 1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To mandarin
man·da·rin   (mān'də-rĭn)   
n.  

  1. A member of any of the nine ranks of high public officials in the Chinese Empire.

  2. A high government official or bureaucrat.

  3. A member of an elite group, especially a person having influence or high status in intellectual or cultural circles.

  4. Mandarin The official national standard spoken language of China, which is based on the principal dialect spoken in and around Beijing. Also called Guoyu, Putonghua.

  5. A mandarin orange.

adj.  

  1. Of, relating to, or resembling a mandarin.

  2. Marked by elaborate and refined language or literary style.


[From Spanish mandarín, from Portuguese mandarim, from Malay menteri, from Sanskrit mantrī, mantrin-, counselor, from mantraḥ, counsel; see men-1 in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

tangerine 
1842, from tangerine orange (1841) "an orange from Tangier," seaport in northern Morocco, from which it was originally imported to Britain. The place name is from L. Tinge. As a color name, attested from 1899.

mandarin 
"Chinese official," 1589, via Port. mandarim or Du. mandorijn from Malay mantri, from Hindi mantri "councilor, minister of state," from Skt. mantri, nom. of mantrin- "advisor," from mantra "counsel," from PIE base *men- "to think" (see mind). Form infl. in Port. by mandar "to command, order." Used generically for the several grades of Chinese officials; sense of "chief dialect of Chinese" (spoken by officials and educated people) is from 1604. The type of small, deep-colored orange so called from 1771, from resemblance of its color to that of robes worn by mandarins.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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