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凡夫俗子 (fán fū sú zǐ) — ordinary people; common mortals; the masses

Definition

A literary term for ordinary, unremarkable people — used to contrast oneself with sages, geniuses, or extraordinary figures, often with humble self-deprecation.

noun
ordinary peoplecommon mortalsthe masses

Examples

  • 凡夫俗子，？
    Wǒ men dōu shì fán fū sú zǐ, nǎ néng méi yǒu fán nǎo ne?
    We are all ordinary people — how could we not have worries?
  • ，凡夫俗子。
    Tā zǒng jué de zì jǐ yǔ zhòng bù tóng, kàn bù qǐ wǒ men zhè xiē fán fū sú zǐ.
    He always thinks he's special and looks down on us common folks.
  • 凡夫俗子。
    fán fū sú zǐ Yě yǒu zì jǐ de mèng xiǎng hé zhuī qiú.
    Even ordinary people have their own dreams and aspirations.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

凡夫ordinary man
凡fánordinary夫fūman
偏正Modifier + head
俗子common person
俗súcommon子zǐperson
偏正Modifier + head

凡夫 and 俗子 both mean an ordinary person, so together they refer to everyday people.

Characters in this word

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

Open 凡 →

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

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

夫 originally drew a man. It was borrowed purely for its sound to write a pronoun, so the picture and the pronoun meaning are unrelated.

Open 夫 →

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
亻Written in full as人rénperson
Sound part声符shēngfú
谷
谷gǔ俗sú
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

俗 is built from 亻, a person, and 谷, which gives the sound; it refers to customs of people.

Open 俗 →

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

子 is drawn as a baby with a large head, arms stretched out, and legs wrapped in a blanket.

Open 子 →
Appears in
Idioms & Set PhrasesPeople (General)

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