七八十 (qī bā shí) — seventy or eighty (approximately)

Definition

A vague numeral meaning 'seventy or eighty' — used to indicate an approximate number in that range, not an exact figure. Typical in casual, spoken estimates of age, income, or quantities.

numeral
seventy or eighty (approximately)

Examples

  • 七八十，。
    Tā yé ye yǐ jīng qī bā shí suì le, shēn tǐ hái hěn jiàn kāng.
    His grandfather is already seventy or eighty years old and still very healthy.
  • 七八十。
    Zhè ge cūn zi dà yuē yǒu qī bā shí hù rén jiā.
    This village has about seventy or eighty households.
  • 七八十。
    Tā měi gè yuè zhèng qī bā shí kuài qián.
    He earns about seventy or eighty yuan each month.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

七八seven or eight
七qīseven八bāeight
联合Side by side
十shíten

七 and 八 stand side by side before 十 to give an approximate seventy or eighty.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 七 comes from two crossing lines: the top line runs left to right, and the next line goes down and across.

Open 七 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

八 shows two bent lines, indicating the original meaning 'to divide'; it was later used for 'eight' because the words sounded alike.

Open 八 →

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

The early shape 十 was mostly a single vertical stroke, sometimes with a dot, and later gained a horizontal stroke to form a cross. For the number ten, it marked the next digit above one.

Open 十 →

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