令堂 (lìng táng) — (honorific) your mother (formal, respectful)

Definition

令堂 (lìngtáng) is a formal, honorific term for 'your mother,' used when speaking about someone else's mother with respect — far more literary than everyday words like 妈妈 or 母亲.

noun
(honorific) your mother (formal, respectful)

Examples

  • 令堂？
    Qǐng wèn lìng táng shēn tǐ kě hǎo?
    May I ask how your mother is doing?
  • 令堂。
    Wǒ zuó tiān zài jiē shàng yù jiàn le lìng táng.
    I ran into your mother on the street yesterday.
  • 令堂。
    Qǐng dài wǒ xiàng lìng táng wèn hǎo.
    Please send my regards to your mother.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
前缀qiánzhuìPrefix

A fixed syllable in front that adds a shade of meaning but carries none of its own.

令lìnghonorific
堂tángmother's hall

令 marks respect to the listener, and 堂 evokes the mother's hall, so the term means your mother.

Characters in this word

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

  • 亼亼jí
  • 卩卩jié

In 令, the upper 亼 is an open mouth and the lower 卩 is a kneeling person, together showing someone giving orders.

Open 令 →

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
土土tǔ
Sound part声符shēngfú
尚
尚shàng堂táng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

堂 uses 土 as a ground/earth part and 尚 for sound.

Open 堂 →

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