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三番五次 (sān fān wǔ cì) — over and over again; repeatedly

Definition

An emphatic chengyu-style phrase for doing something 'over and over' — stronger than 再三/一再 and more formal/emphatic than the plain adverb 反复. Often used to complain about repeated actions.

phrase
over and over againrepeatedly

Examples

  • 三番五次，。
    Tā sān fān wǔ cì dì fàn tóng yàng de cuò wù, zhēn ràng rén shēng qì.
    He makes the same mistake over and over again, which is really annoying.
  • 三番五次。
    Mā ma sān fān wǔ cì dì tí xǐng wǒ chū mén yào dài yào shi.
    Mom reminds me over and over again to bring my keys when I go out.
  • 三番五次，。
    Suī rán wǒ sān fān wǔ cì dì jiě shì, tā hái shì bù xiāng xìn.
    Although I explained over and over again, he still didn't believe me.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

三番three rounds
三sānthree番fānround or time
偏正Modifier + head
五次five times
五wǔfive次cìtime
偏正Modifier + head

三番 and 五次 both mean repeated rounds, so together they mean over and over again.

Characters in this word

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

三 is drawn as three parallel strokes, like 一 with one stroke and 二 with two.

Open 三 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
田田tián
Sound part声符shēngfú
釆
釆biàn番fān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

番 is built from 釆 and 田: 釆 supplies a sound, and 田 is the meaning part, though the original sense is unclear.

Open 番 →

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

An older form had a crossed mark between a top bar and a bottom bar. The modern 五 keeps those bars, while the original idea is uncertain.

Open 五 →

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

The old form of 次 shows a person exhaling, with the marks above the figure representing breath.

Open 次 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9

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