旧友 (jiù yǒu) — old friend

Definition

A literary or formal term for 'old friend,' implying a long-standing relationship. More written than the everyday 朋友.

noun
old friend
Measure word · 位
Easily confused

Examples

  • 旧友。
    Zuó tiān wǒ zài jiē shàng yù dào le yí gè jiù yǒu.
    Yesterday I ran into an old friend on the street.
  • 旧友，。
    Tā shì wǒ dà xué shí de jiù yǒu, duō nián méi jiàn le.
    He is an old friend from my university days; I haven't seen him for years.
  • 旧友，。
    jiù yǒu Chóng féng, dà jiā dōu fēi cháng kāi xīn.
    When old friends reunite, everyone is very happy.

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.

旧jiùold/former
友yǒufriend

旧 (old/former) with 友 (friend) gives an old friend.

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 舊; 旧 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
雈雈huánowl
Sound part声符shēngfú
臼
臼jiù舊jiù
Same sound today

The traditional form of 旧 is 舊, which shows 雈, an owl, above 臼, which gives the sound.

Open 旧 →

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

友 is drawn as two 又, the hand form, side by side. The old explanation says two hands together mean friendship.

Open 友 →

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