一把手

• Pinyin: yī bǎ shǒu
• Hanzi breakdown: 一 = the number one; the first; primary; 把 = 扌(hand) + 巴 (grip — to hold or grasp; a handle); 手 = pictogram of a hand — the agent who acts, holds authority, and controls outcomes

Meaning

The top leader; the person in overall charge. The highest-ranking official or decision-maker in an organisation, institution, or government body.

Literally 'one handle' — the person who holds the reins. Widely used in political and corporate Chinese to refer to the first-in-command: the party secretary, president, CEO, or equivalent. A 二把手 (number two) refers to the deputy. Appears frequently in official media, governance discourse, and internal organisational communication. Can also informally mean 'someone highly skilled' at a craft or task.

Examples

1. 在中国的行政体系中，地方党委书记通常被视为一把手，负责统筹辖区内的重大政策决策和发展方向。 In China’s administrative system, the local Party secretary is typically seen as the top leader, responsible for coordinating major policy decisions and the overall development direction of the jurisdiction.
2. 这家上市公司的一把手在年报发布会上首次公开承认，过去两年的扩张战略过于激进，导致资金链出现了紧张局面。 At the annual report briefing, the top leader of this publicly listed company publicly admitted for the first time that the expansion strategy of the past two years had been too aggressive, leading to strained cash flow.
3. 调查结果显示，在腐败案件中，担任一把手的官员由于权力高度集中且监督相对薄弱，往往成为贪腐行为的高发群体。 The investigation found that in corruption cases, officials who serve as the top leader—because power is highly concentrated and oversight is relatively weak—often become a high-risk group for graft.

Usage Guide

Context: politics, governance, corporate, media

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 调查报告指出，部分地区权力过于集中于一把手，监督失灵，腐败便容易滋生。(The investigation report points out that in some areas, power is too concentrated in the one top leader, oversight fails, and corruption easily grows.)
• 这位新任一把手上任后先召集中层开战略研讨，计划十八个月内梳理考核、资源和定位。(After taking office, the new top leader first convened middle management for a strategic workshop and plans to review evaluation, resources, and positioning within eighteen months.)

Don't Say

• 他是厨房的一把手 — while colloquially this could mean the best cook in the kitchen, it risks confusion with the political meaning in formal contexts; say 他厨艺一流 or 他是我们的主厨 to express culinary skill clearly; reserve 一把手 for organisational leadership contexts

Origin & History

一 (one — the first and highest) + 把 (handle/grip — to grasp or hold; a handle) + 手 (hand — the agent who acts and controls)

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal