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丧事 (sāng shì) — funeral arrangements; obsequies

Definition

丧事 refers to the practical arrangements around a funeral — the tasks and logistics, not the ceremony or grief itself. Compared with everyday 葬礼 ('funeral'), it emphasizes the organizational work to be done.

noun
funeral arrangementsobsequies

Examples

  • 丧事。
    Tā zài lǎo jiā zhāng luo sāng shì.
    He is arranging funeral affairs in his hometown.
  • 丧事。
    Hěn duō qīn yǒu cóng yuǎn fāng gǎn lái cān jiā sāng shì.
    Many relatives and friends rushed from far away to attend the funeral.
  • 丧事，。
    sāng shì Bàn wán zhī hòu, yì jiā rén hái xū yào chǔ lǐ hòu xù de shì qing.
    After the funeral affairs are completed, the family still needs to handle the follow-up matters.

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.

丧sàngfuneral
事shìaffairs

“丧” (funeral) and “事” (affairs) give funeral arrangements.

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 喪; 丧 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
㗊㗊㗊many mouths
Sound part声符shēngfú
桑
桑sāng喪sàng
Same sound today

The traditional form 喪 originally paired 桑 (mulberry tree) with 㗊 (many mouths). The simplified 丧 is the modern form, deriving from a form that used 哭 (cry) and 亡 (die).

Open 丧 →

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

In 事, 又 is a hand and 中 is a flagpole with a drum; holding a flag in hand depicts performing a job.

Open 事 →
Appears in
Chinese Culture & Customs

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