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家常便饭 (jiā cháng biàn fàn) — (idiom) home-style food, simple home-cooked meal; (idiom) common occurrence, routine matter

Definition

Literally 'home-style everyday meal,' it means both simple home cooking and, figuratively, something that happens all the time. Often used with 成了 or 对…来说 to mean 'nothing special, just routine.'

idiom
home-style foodsimple home-cooked mealcommon occurrenceroutine matter

Examples

  • 家常便饭。
    Jīn tiān lái wǒ jiā chī gè jiā cháng biàn fàn ba.
    Come to my house today for a simple home-cooked meal.
  • 家常便饭。
    Zhè zhǒng shì duì wǒ lái shuō yǐ jīng chéng le jiā cháng biàn fàn.
    This kind of thing has become a common occurrence for me.
  • 家常便饭，。
    Qǐng tā chī gè jiā cháng biàn fàn jiù xíng le, bié tài kè qi.
    Just treat him to a simple meal, don't be too polite.

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.

家常home-style
家jiāhome常chángeveryday
偏正Modifier + head
便饭simple meal
便biànsimple饭fànmeal
偏正Modifier + head

家常 gives home-style, everyday, and 便饭 gives a simple meal; literally home cooking, extended to routine matters.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
宀宀miánroof
Sound part声符shēngfú
𢑓
𢑓𢑓家jiā
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The early drawing of 家 showed a roof 宀 over a male-pig sign 𢑓 that gave the pronunciation; the lower part later changed shape.

Open 家 →

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
巾巾jīncloth
Sound part声符shēngfú
尚
尚shàng常cháng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

常 pairs 巾, a cloth, with 尚 as a sound part; the form originally referred to a lower garment.

Open 常 →

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 →

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 飯; 饭 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
食食shífood
Sound part声符shēngfú
反
反fǎn飯fàn
Same sound today

The traditional form 飯 combines 食 (food) with 反 for the sound; the simplified 饭 is a shorthand, so its parts are not the historical form.

Open 饭 →
Appears in
Food (General)Idioms & Set Phrases

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