夫妇 (fū fù) — (married) couple, husband and wife

Definition

夫妇 is a formal, written-style word for 'husband and wife,' used more in official or literary contexts than 夫妻 (neutral) or 两口子 (casual, informal).

noun

(married) couplehusband and wife

Measure word · 对

夫妇。
Wǒ men rèn shi le yí duì hěn xìng fú de fū fù.
We got to know a very happy married couple.
夫妇。
Zhè duì fū fù yǒu sān gè kě ài de hái zi.
This couple has three lovely children.
夫妇。
Nà duì fū fù yì qǐ jīng yíng yì jiā kā fēi guǎn.
That couple runs a cafe together.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

夫fūhusband

夫 means husband and 妇 means wife, so together they name a married couple.

Characters in this word

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.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 婦; 妇 is its simplified writing.

女帚婦

Meaning part形符xíngfú

女女nǚwoman

Sound part声符shēngfú

帚

帚zhǒu婦fù

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 婦 pairs 女 (woman) with 帚 (broom), and the Shuowen reads it as a woman holding a broom. The simplified 妇 is a shorthand.

Appears in