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胡子 (hú zi) — facial hair (beard, mustache, whiskers); (colloquial) bandit

Definition

Everyday word for facial hair (beard, mustache, whiskers). Don't confuse with the rare colloquial sense 'bandit' — the related words 强盗, 盗 all specifically mean robber or to steal, not beard.

noun
facial hair (beard, mustache, whiskers)(colloquial) bandit
Measure word · 撮, 根

Examples

  • 胡子。
    Tā liú le yì liǎn hú zi.
    He grew a full beard.
  • 胡子。
    Tā de hú zi yòu cháng yòu hēi.
    His beard is long and black.
  • 胡子。
    Diàn yǐng lǐ de hú zi cháng shì huài rén.
    The bandits in movies are often bad guys.

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.

胡húfacial hair
子zǐending

胡 names the facial hair, and 子 completes the everyday word.

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.

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 →
Appears in
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