十五六 (shí wǔ liù) — fifteen or sixteen; fifteen to sixteen (approximate number)

Definition

十五六 means 'about fifteen or sixteen' — two adjacent numbers spoken together to signal an approximate count, age, date, or amount. It's a spoken/approximation pattern, not an exact figure.

numeral
fifteen or sixteenfifteen to sixteen (approximate number)

Examples

  • 十五六。
    Tā dà gài shí wǔ liù suì.
    He is about fifteen or sixteen years old.
  • 十五六。
    Wǒ men bān yǒu shí wǔ liù gè rén.
    Our class has fifteen or sixteen people.
  • 十五六。
    Wǒ cóng shí wǔ liù hào kāi shǐ fàng jià.
    I start my vacation on the 15th or 16th.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

十五fifteen
十shíten五wǔfive
联合Side by side
六liùsix

十五 and 六 side by side mean fifteen or sixteen.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

The early shape 十 was mostly a single vertical stroke, sometimes with a dot, and later gained a horizontal stroke to form a cross. For the number ten, it marked the next digit above one.

Open 十 →

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

An older form had a crossed mark between a top bar and a bottom bar. The modern 五 keeps those bars, while the original idea is uncertain.

Open 五 →

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

The shape of 六 may come from a simple drawing of a shed, or from an ancient counting mark.

Open 六 →

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