原配 (yuán pèi) — first wife (the wife a man first marries, as opposed to a later wife or concubine)

Definition

原配 means 'first wife' — the woman a man was originally married to, as distinct from a later wife or 二房/小妾. Note: the term centers on a man; a woman's counterpart in modern use is 前妻 (ex-wife).

noun
first wife (the wife a man first marries, as opposed to a later wife or concubine)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 原配，。
    Tā de yuán pèi qù shì hòu, tā yòu qǔ le yí gè nián qīng nǚ zǐ.
    After his first wife died, he married a young woman.
  • ，原配。
    Zài nà bù diàn shì jù lǐ, zhǔ jué de yuán pèi shì gè shàn liáng de nǚ rén.
    In that TV drama, the main character's first wife is a kind woman.
  • 原配。
    Lí hūn hòu tā hěn shǎo tí qǐ yuán pèi de shì.
    After the divorce, he rarely mentions matters about his first wife.

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.

原yuánoriginal
配pèispouse

原 (original) and 配 (spouse) name the first wife a man marries.

Characters in this word

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

原 combines 泉 (spring) and 厂 (cliff), picturing a spring bursting from a cliff-side, which gives the sense of origin or source.

Open 原 →

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

  • 酉酉yǒualcohol vessel
  • 卩卩jiékneeling person

配 is formed by putting 酉, an alcohol vessel, next to 卩, a kneeling person. The reference gives these two parts, but not the reason they combine.

Open 配 →

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