TongTong
Sign in

同伴 (tóng bàn) — companion; comrade

Definition

同伴 means a companion you spend time or work with (school, travel, lab). More neutral than 伙伴 (which leans toward teammates/business partners) and less intimate than 伴侣 (romantic/life partner).

noun
companioncomrade
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 同伴。
    Tā shì wǒ dà xué sì nián de zuì hǎo tóng bàn.
    He was my best companion throughout four years of college.
  • ，同伴。
    Zhè cì dēng shān, wǒ zhǎo le jǐ gè yǒu jīng yàn de tóng bàn.
    For this mountain climbing trip, I found several experienced companions.
  • ，同伴。
    Zài shí yàn shì lǐ, tā shì wǒ zuì kě kào de tóng bàn.
    In the lab, she is my most reliable companion.

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.

同tóngsame
伴bàncompanion

同伴 pairs 同 (same) and 伴 (companion), so it means a companion or fellow.

Characters in this word

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

同 originally drew a pipe. It is the old form of 筒.

Open 同 →

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rén
Sound part声符shēngfú
半
半bàn伴bàn
Same sound today

伴 puts 亻 (person) beside 半. The person part fits the meaning of companion, and 半 gives the sound.

Open 伴 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6Friends & Social5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

Browse more HSK 6 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.