The Chinese word 大臣 (dàchén), meaning "high official" or "minister" in a historical or imperial context, is a compound formed by combining the character 大 (dà), meaning "great" or "high", with 臣 (chén), meaning "minister", "official", or "subject". This structure follows a common modifier-noun pattern in Chinese word formation, where 大 acts as an adjective emphasizing rank or importance, and 臣 is the core noun denoting the person's role. Thus, the term literally translates to "great minister", designating a high-ranking statesman directly serving a monarch, and its formation exemplifies how classical Chinese titles often use 大 to denote elevated status within a hierarchy.