'Mandarin' definitions:

Definition of 'mandarin'

From: WordNet
noun
Shrub or small tree having flattened globose fruit with very sweet aromatic pulp and thin yellow-orange to flame- orange rind that is loose and easily removed; native to southeastern Asia [syn: mandarin, mandarin orange, mandarin orange tree, Citrus reticulata]
noun
A member of an elite intellectual or cultural group
noun
Any high government official or bureaucrat
noun
A high public official of imperial China
noun
A somewhat flat reddish-orange loose skinned citrus of China [syn: mandarin, mandarin orange]
noun
The dialect of Chinese spoken in Beijing and adopted as the official language for all of China [syn: Mandarin, Mandarin Chinese, Mandarin dialect, Beijing dialect]

Definition of 'Mandarin'

From: GCIDE
  • Mandarin \Man`da*rin"\, n. [Pg. mandarim, from Malay mantr[imac] minister of state, prop. a Hind. word, fr. Skr. mantrin a counselor, manira a counsel, man to think.]
  • 1. A Chinese public officer or nobleman; a civil or military official in China and Annam. [1913 Webster]
  • 2. Hence: A powerful government official or bureaucrat, especially one who is pedantic and has a strong sense of his own importance and privelege. [PJC]
  • 3. Hence: A member of an influential, powerful or elite group, espcially within artistic or intellectual circles; -- used especially of elder members who are traditionalist or conservative about their specialties. [PJC]
  • 5. The form of the Chinese language spoken by members of the Chinese Imperial Court an officials of the empire. [PJC]
  • 6. Any of several closely related dialects of the Chinese language spoken by a mojority of the population of China, the standard variety of which is spoken in the region around Beijing. [PJC]
  • 7. (Bot.) A small flattish reddish-orange loose-skinned orange, with an easily separable rind. It is thought to be of Chinese origin, and is counted a distinct species (Citrus reticulata formerly Citrus nobilis); called also mandarin orange and tangerine. [1913 Webster]
  • Mandarin language, the spoken or colloquial language of educated people in China.
  • Mandarin yellow (Chem.), an artificial aniline dyestuff used for coloring silk and wool, and regarded as a complex derivative of quinoline. [1913 Webster]

Synonyms of 'mandarin'

From: Moby Thesaurus

Words containing 'Mandarin'