天主

Tiānzhǔ

proper noun #12,058

Meanings

1 God (in Catholicism)
2 the Lord of Heaven

About God

宗教人物 religious figure

God as Chinese Catholics name him, "the Lord of Heaven"; the Catholic Church in Chinese is 天主教. Chinese Protestants usually say 上帝 or 神 instead.

Characters

Examples

HSK 6

天主教在中国也有很多信徒。

Tiānzhǔjiào zài Zhōngguó yě yǒu hěnduō xìntú.

Catholicism also has many followers in China.

HSK 7-9

她信奉天主。

Tā xìnfèng Tiānzhǔ.

She believes in God (Catholic).

Tips

history

Jesuit missionaries such as 利玛窦 (Matteo Ricci) used 天主 alongside the classical words 天 'Heaven' and 上帝. In 1704 Pope Clement XI banned those two as names for God, which is how 天主 became the Catholic word.

Stroke Order

天 tiān

主 zhǔ