偕 (xié) — (literary bound form) in the company of, together with

Definition

A literary bound form meaning 'together with / in the company of', used almost entirely in set phrases like 白头偕老 ('grow old together') and 偕同 ('together with'). It is formal/written and does not stand alone in modern speech.

bound form
(literary bound form) in the company oftogether with
Easily confused

Examples

  • 偕。
    Tā men xié tóng qián wǎng běi jīng.
    They went to Beijing together.
  • 偕。
    Yuàn nǐ men bái tóu xié lǎo.
    May you grow old together.
  • 偕。
    Liǎng rén xié xíng yú lín jiān xiǎo jìng.
    The two walked together along the forest path.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

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
人人rénman
Sound part声符shēngfú
皆
皆jiē偕xié
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

偕 is made from 人, “man,” and 皆, which gives the sound.

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