Mandarin

Part of speech: noun (n.)

1. A Chinese public officer or nobleman; a civil or military official in China and Annam.

2. A small orange, with easily separable rind. It is thought to be of Chinese origin, and is counted a distinct species (Citrus nobilis)mandarin orange; tangerine. Mandarin duck (Zoöl.), a beautiful Asiatic duck (Dendronessa galericulata), often domesticated, and regarded by the Chinese as an emblem of conjugal affection. -- 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.