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土生土长 (tǔ shēng tǔ zhǎng) — locally born and bred; indigenous; home-grown

Definition

A set phrase meaning born and raised in one place, used for people (土生土长的北京人) or local produce. As an adjective it modifies the noun directly; it is stronger and more idiomatic than the plain adjective sense of 土.

phrase
locally born and bredindigenoushome-grown

Examples

  • 土生土长，。
    Tā shì yí wèi tǔ shēng tǔ zhǎng de nóng mín, duì zhè piàn tǔ dì fēi cháng liǎo jiě.
    He is a locally born and bred farmer who knows this land very well.
  • 土生土长，。
    Zhè zhǒng shuǐ guǒ shì tǔ shēng tǔ zhǎng de, suǒ yǐ tè bié xīn xiān.
    This fruit is home-grown, so it's especially fresh.
  • ，土生土长。
    Suī rán tā zài guó wài shēng huó le hěn duō nián, dàn tā réng rán jué de zì jǐ shì tǔ shēng tǔ zhǎng de zhōng guó rén.
    Although he has lived abroad for many years, he still considers himself a locally born and bred Chinese.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

土生born locally
土tǔlocal soil生shēngborn
偏正Modifier + head
土长grown locally
土tǔlocal soil长chánggrown
偏正Modifier + head

土生 and 土长 are parallel: born and grown in the same local soil.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 土 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

生 shows 屮 (a bud) above 一 (the ground), drawing a sprout coming up from the earth.

Open 生 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 土 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 長; 长 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 長 pictures an old man with long hair. The simplified 长 is a later shorthand, so its strokes do not show that original picture.

Open 长 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Idioms & Set Phrases

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