头胎 (tóu tāi) — firstborn child, first child

Definition

Refers specifically to a mother's first pregnancy or the first child born — the 'first' is tied to the birth order, not just the child. Often contrasted with the second child (二胎) in family-planning contexts.

noun
firstborn childfirst child
Measure word · 个
Easily confused

Examples

  • 头胎，。
    Tā shì wǒ jiā de tóu tāi, xià miàn hái yǒu yí gè dì di.
    She is the firstborn in our family; below her there is a younger brother.
  • ，头胎，。
    Dì yī cì huái yùn, tā huái de shì tóu tāi, suǒ yǐ tè bié xiǎo xīn.
    Being her first pregnancy, she is expecting her first child, so she is especially careful.
  • 。
    Hěn duō fù mǔ duì tóu tāi de yāo qiú bǐ jiào yán gé.
    Many parents have stricter demands for the firstborn child.

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.

头tóufirst
胎tāipregnancy/birth

头 means first and 胎 refers to a pregnancy or birth, so 头胎 points to the first child born.

Characters in this word

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 頭; 头 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
頁頁yèhead
Sound part声符shēngfú
豆
豆dòu頭tóu
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 頭 shows 頁, meaning head, beside 豆 as a sound component; the simplified 头 is a later shorthand.

Open 头 →

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
⺼Written in full as肉ròu
Sound part声符shēngfú
台
台tái胎tāi
Same sound today

胎 is formed from ⺼ (written in full as 肉) and 台, which gives the sound.

Open 胎 →

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