坟墓 (fén mù) — grave, tomb | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A general word for a single grave or tomb. Use 墓地 or 公墓 for a cemetery (a place with many graves), and 墓碑 for the stone marker on top.

noun

gravetomb

Measure word · 座

Examples

，坟墓。
Měi nián qīng míng, tā men dōu huì qù fén mù qián sǎo mù.
Every Qingming Festival, they go to clean the grave.
坟墓，。
Zhè zuò fén mù zài shān pō shàng, zhōu wéi zhǒng mǎn le sōng shù.
This tomb is on the hillside, surrounded by pine trees.
坟墓。
Méi rén zhī dào nà piàn fén mù shì shuí jiā de.
No one knows whose family that grave belongs to.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

坟 (mound) and 墓 (tomb) both point to a burial place.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 墳; 坟 is its simplified writing.

土賁墳

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

賁

賁bì墳fén

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

For the traditional form 墳, 土 shows the meaning and 賁 gives the sound.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

莫土墓

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

莫

莫mò墓mù

Same sound today

墓 combines 土 (earth) and 莫 (sound).

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 HSK 2.0 Level 6 Religion & Belief 5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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