生辰 (shēng chén) — (formal) birthday; date of birth

Definition

Literary/formal word for 'birthday,' used in writing, celebrations, and traditional contexts like horoscopes. The everyday word is 生日.

noun
(formal) birthdaydate of birth
Easily confused

Examples

  • 生辰、、、。
    shēng chén Bā zì zhǐ de shì chū shēng de nián, yuè, rì, shí.
    The eight-character horoscope refers to the year, month, day, and hour of birth.
  • 生辰，。
    Jīn tiān shì yé ye de jiǔ shí suì shēng chén, quán jiā dōu lái zhù shòu.
    Today is Grandpa's 90th birthday; the whole family has come to celebrate.
  • 生辰，。
    Tā jì xià le měi gè hái zi de shēng chén, cóng bú wàng jì.
    He writes down each child's birthday and never forgets.

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.

生shēngbirth
辰chéntime

“生” (birth) + “辰” (time): time of birth.

Characters in this word

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

生 shows 屮 (a bud) above 一 (the ground), drawing a sprout coming up from the earth.

Open 生 →

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

The shape shows a farming tool used for tilling and weeding, possibly made from a large clam shell. It may also picture a person gripping a cliff.

Open 辰 →

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