络腮胡子 (luò sāi hú zi) — full beard

Definition

A colloquial noun for a full, bushy beard that grows across the cheeks and jaw (not just the chin). Unlike literary terms like 长髯, this is the everyday spoken word.

idiom
full beard

Examples

  • 络腮胡子。
    Tā liú le yì liǎn luò sāi hú zi.
    He has grown a full beard.
  • 络腮胡子。
    Hěn duō nán rén xǐ huan liú luò sāi hú zi.
    Many men like to grow a full beard.
  • 络腮胡子。
    luò sāi hú zi Ràng tā kàn qǐ lái gèng chéng shú le.
    A full beard makes him look more mature.

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.

络腮sideburns
络luòhang down腮sāicheek
动宾Verb + object
胡子beard
胡húbeard子zǐsuffix
后缀Suffix

络腮 describes hair hanging around the cheeks, and 胡子 means beard, giving a full beard.

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 絡; 络 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìthread
Sound part声符shēngfú
各
各gè絡luò
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 絡 pairs 糸 (thread) with 各 as a sound part, showing something wrapped in thread, like a web of thread; the simplified 络 is a later shorthand.

Open 络 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 腮 →

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
⺼Written in full as肉ròumeat
Sound part声符shēngfú
古
古gǔ胡hú
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

胡 combines 古, which points to its sound, with ⺼ (肉), meaning meat or flesh.

Open 胡 →

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

子 is drawn as a baby with a large head, arms stretched out, and legs wrapped in a blanket.

Open 子 →

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