安民告示

ānmíngàoshì

idiom

Meanings

1 a public notice to reassure the people
2 advance notice (of an agenda or change)
3 a heads-up to keep things calm

Characters

peaceful, to pacify

people, populace

to announce, notify

to show, indicate

Examples

新政府上台后立即发布了安民告示。

Xīn zhèngfǔ shàngtái hòu lìjí fābùle ānmíngàoshì.

Right after taking power the new government issued a public notice to reassure the people.

开会前先出个安民告示，让大家有个准备。

Kāihuì qián xiān chū ge ānmíngàoshì, ràng dàjiā yǒu ge zhǔnbèi.

Before the meeting, post a heads-up so everyone can prepare.

Tips

history

Originally from Qing-era 《避兵十日记》 by Jin Niànqú: when armies passed through, magistrates would post 安民告示 — 'pacify-the-people notices' — to stop residents fleeing or rioting. Mao Zedong revived it metaphorically in 《党委会的工作方法》 to mean 'tell people the agenda in advance'.

usage

Modern figurative use is mostly in formal/political register: announcing a policy change, layoffs, price hikes — anything where leaders pre-empt panic with a calming notice.

Stroke Order

安 ān

民 mín

告 gào

示 shì