大腹便便 (dà fù pián pián) — (idiom) pot-bellied, paunchy, having a large protruding belly

Definition

A descriptive idiom for someone with a large, bulging belly — pot-bellied or paunchy. Tone is mildly mocking, used to describe a person's unhealthy build.

idiom
pot-belliedpaunchyhaving a large protruding belly

Examples

  • 大腹便便，。
    Tā zhōng nián yǐ hòu biàn de dà fù pián pián, zǒu lù dōu chī lì le.
    After middle age he became pot-bellied and even walking became difficult.
  • 大腹便便，。
    Nà ge dà fù pián pián de nán rén zuò zài shā fā shàng, kàn qǐ lái hěn bú jiàn kāng.
    That pot-bellied man sat on the sofa, looking very unhealthy.
  • ，大腹便便。
    Tā jīng cháng hē jiǔ, xiàn zài yǐ jīng shì dà fù pián pián de mú yàng le.
    He drinks often and now already looks pot-bellied.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

The form 大 is a picture of a person standing and facing forward, not of someone stretching their arms.

Open 大 →

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
肉肉ròumeat; flesh
Sound part声符shēngfú
复
复fù腹⁰fù
Same sound today

The left part 肉, meaning flesh, shows this is a body part, and the right part 复 gives the sound.

Open 腹 →

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

便 pairs 亻 (person) with 更 (to change), showing a person changing posture to become comfortable.

Open 便 →

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

便 pairs 亻 (person) with 更 (to change), showing a person changing posture to become comfortable.

Open 便 →

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