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父辈 (fù bèi) — people of one's father's generation; the generation of one's parents and their peers

Definition

Refers to the generation of one's parents and their peers — older than 同辈 (the speaker's own generation) and broader than 父亲 (just 'father'). Connotes respect for that generation's experience.

noun
people of one's father's generationthe generation of one's parents and their peers

Examples

  • 父辈。
    fù bèi Men jīng lì guò hěn duō kùn nan.
    Our parents' generation experienced many hardships.
  • 父辈。
    Wǒ men yào zūn zhòng fù bèi de yì jiàn.
    We should respect the opinions of our elders.
  • 父辈。
    fù bèi De fèn dòu wèi wǒ men chuàng zào le tiáo jiàn.
    The struggles of our parents' generation created the conditions for us.

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.

父fùfather
辈bèigeneration

父 (father) and 辈 (generation) together mean the generation of fathers and their peers.

Characters in this word

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

The shape 父 shows a hand holding a stone blade, referring to a man working with a stone axe.

Open 父 →

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 輩; 辈 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
車車jū
Sound part声符shēngfú
非
非fēi輩bèi
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 輩 pairs 車 (vehicle) with 非, which gives the sound; this describes 輩, not the simplified 辈.

Open 辈 →
Appears in
Family & Kinship

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