老婆子 (lǎo pó zǐ) — (colloquial, sometimes derogatory) old woman, old biddy; (colloquial, affectionate or matter-of-fact) my wife, my old woman

Definition

Colloquial term for an older woman. When you say 我的老婆子 / 我家老婆子 it means 'my wife' in a casual, slightly old-fashioned or humorous way — not a standard term for 'wife'.

noun
(colloquial, sometimes derogatory) old womanold biddy(colloquial, affectionate or matter-of-fact) my wifemy old woman
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 老婆子。
    Nà ge lǎo pó zǐ yòu zài mà rén le.
    That old biddy is scolding people again.
  • 老婆子。
    Wǒ jiā lǎo pó zǐ zuò fàn hěn hǎo chī.
    My old woman cooks very well.
  • 老婆子。
    Jiē shàng jǐ gè lǎo pó zǐ zuò zài yì qǐ liáo tiān.
    A few old women on the street are sitting together chatting.

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.

老婆old woman
老lǎoold婆pówoman
偏正Modifier + head
子zǐ

老婆 denotes an old woman or wife, and 子 adds a familiar colloquial tone.

Characters in this word

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

The shape 老 combines 人 (man), 毛 (hair), and 匕 (cane), showing a man with long hair leaning on a cane.

Open 老 →

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
女女nǚwoman
Sound part声符shēngfú
波
波bō婆pó
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

婆 pairs 女 (woman) with 波, which gives the sound. The 女 part shows the character is about a woman.

Open 婆 →

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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