📖 Meaning
An official sent by the emperor to the provinces with imperial authority to handle major affairs. Today it is used sarcastically to mock a person dispatched from a higher office who, without understanding the actual local situation, arbitrarily issues orders and bosses people around.
📜 Origin Story
The term comes from the Qing dynasty, formalized in Ruan Kuisheng's “Chayuke Hua” (Tea-Room Talks). A section titled “Qinchai Guanshi” states that officials of the third rank and above used the seal of a qinchai dachen (imperial commissioner), while those of the fourth rank and below used the seal of a qinchai guanyuan (imperial envoy official). The emperor dispatched such envoys as personal representatives to handle major affairs such as military campaigns, disaster relief, or provincial audits. The term was also a fixed official title in the Qing bureaucracy, and in modern usage it has acquired a mocking connotation of arrogant meddling from above.
💡 Example Usage
这位领导刚上任就摆出钦差大臣的架势，对基层工作指手画脚。
This leader assumed the air of an imperial commissioner as soon as he took office, criticizing and dictating to the grassroots work without understanding it.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 钦差大臣
- Pinyin: qīn chāi dà chén
- Literal Translation: imperial, dispatched, great minister
- Category: Power
- Characters: 4