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先生 (xiān sheng) — Mr.; (formal) sir; husband (often used in polite or formal contexts)

Definition

先生 has two main uses: a polite address for a man ('Mr. / sir' — more formal than 男士) and a polite/formal word for 'husband' (more formal than 老公, more respectful than 丈夫).

noun
Mr.(formal) sirhusband (often used in polite or formal contexts)
Measure word · 位

Examples

  • 先生，！
    xiān sheng, Nǐ hǎo!
    Hello, sir!
  • 先生。
    Wǒ de xiān sheng shì yī shēng.
    My husband is a doctor.
  • 先生？
    Nà ge xiān sheng shì shuí?
    Who is that gentleman?

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.

先xiānbefore
生shēngborn

先 says before, 生 says born; 先生 names one born earlier, hence a teacher or gentleman.

Characters in this word

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

先 combines 止 (foot) and 儿 (person) to show someone moving forward.

Open 先 →

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

生 shows 屮 (a bud) above 一 (the ground), drawing a sprout coming up from the earth.

Open 生 →
Appears in
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