TongTong
Sign in

单身 (dān shēn) — unmarried; single

Definition

单身 is the standard, neutral term for someone not married. It refers to marital status, not being physically alone — contrast 独身, which emphasizes living alone.

unmarriedsingle

Examples

  • 单身，。
    Tā yì zhí dān shēn, méi yǒu jié guò hūn.
    He has always been single, never married.
  • 单身。
    dān shēn Shēng huó yě yǒu zì yóu zì zài de hǎo chù.
    Single life also has the advantage of being carefree.
  • 单身，。
    Tā dān shēn le shí nián, jīn nián zhōng yú jié hūn le.
    She had been single for ten years and finally got married this year.

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.

单dānalone
身shēnperson

单 “alone” describes 身 “person”, giving the sense of an unmarried individual.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 單; 单 is its simplified writing.

The form 單 originally pictured a Y-shaped wooden stick with two stones on top.

Open 单 →

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

The shape of 身 comes from a drawing of a pregnant woman.

Open 身 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Romance & Marriage3000 Most Frequent Chinese Words5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.