而立之年 (ér lì zhī nián) — thirty years of age (often referring to the stage in life when one becomes independent and self-reliant)

Definition

A literary, Confucian-rooted phrase meaning 'the age of thirty', from the Analects line 三十而立 — the age when a person should be financially and morally established. Use it in writing, speeches, or formal talk about this life stage.

noun
thirty years of age (often referring to the stage in life when one becomes independent and self-reliant)

Examples

  • 而立之年，。
    Tā yǐ jīng dào le ér lì zhī nián, shì yè yě jiàn jiàn wěn dìng le.
    He has reached the age of thirty, and his career is gradually stabilizing.
  • 而立之年。
    ér lì zhī nián Shì yí gè rén cóng qīng nián zǒu xiàng chéng shú de guān jiàn shí qī.
    The age of thirty is a critical period when a person moves from youth to maturity.
  • 而立之年，。
    Zhèng zhí ér lì zhī nián de tā, duì wèi lái chōng mǎn le xìn xīn.
    At the age of thirty, he is full of confidence in the future.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

The shape of 而 is a picture of a beard.

Open 而 →

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

立 pictures a person standing on the ground.

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

The shape pairs 止, a foot, with 一, a beginning place, and means to go.

Open 之 →

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
禾禾héwheat; grain
Sound part声符shēngfú
人
人rén年nián
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

年 pairs 禾 (grain) with 人, which gives the sound. Its original meaning was harvest, and it later came to mean a year.

Open 年 →

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