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小伙儿 (xiǎo huǒ ér) — young man, lad, fellow

Definition

Colloquial, friendly word for a young man or lad, often used when speaking directly to a group of young men (e.g., 小伙儿们). More casual and warmer than the standard 小伙子.

noun
young manladfellow
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 。
    Zhè ge xiǎo xiǎo huǒ ér shì běi jīng rén.
    This young man is from Beijing.
  • 。
    Nà ge xiǎo xiǎo huǒ ér zài dǎ qiú.
    That fellow is playing ball.
  • ，！
    Xiǎo xiǎo huǒ ér men, kuài lái bāng máng!
    Lads, come and help!

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

小伙young companion
小xiǎosmall伙huǒcompanion
偏正Modifier + head
儿érerhua

The idea of a young companion comes from 小 and 伙, with 儿 giving a familiar colloquial feel.

Characters in this word

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

  • 八八bāto divide; to separate
  • 丨丨gǔnsmall object

The shape of 小 comes from three small dots, later elongated into its strokes; the apparent parts 八 and 丨 are a later way of seeing it.

Open 小 →

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 夥; 伙 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 伙 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (大伙儿, 伙) it is 夥; in others (小伙子) it is 伙.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
多多duō
Sound part声符shēngfú
果
果guǒ夥huǒ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 夥 combines 多 (many) with 果 as a sound part. The simplified 伙 is a shorthand, so its parts are not the historical parts.

Open 伙 →

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

The shape 儿 is a simple drawing of a standing person, used as an alternate form of the character for person.

Open 儿 →
Appears in
Life Stages & AgePeople (General)

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