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头子 (tóu zi) — (pejorative) ringleader, chief, boss (of a gang or undesirable group); (dialectal) the best one, winner, champion

Definition

头子 (tóuzi) is a colloquial term for the 'boss' or ringleader, usually pejorative — used for the head of a gang or undesirable group. In some dialects it also means 'the best one, the winner'.

noun
(pejorative) ringleaderchiefboss (of a gang or undesirable group)(dialectal) the best onewinnerchampion
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 头子。
    Nà ge hēi bāng tóu zi yǐ jīng bèi jǐng chá zhuā zhù le.
    That gang leader has already been caught by the police.
  • 头子。
    Zhè cì bǐ sài de tóu zi ná dào le yí wàn yuán jiǎng jīn.
    The winner of this competition received a ten-thousand-yuan prize.
  • 头子，。
    Tā men dōu tīng nà ge tóu zi de huà, méi rén gǎn fǎn kàng.
    They all obey that boss's orders; no one dares to resist.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

头tóuhead/leader
子zǐsuffix

The part 头 means 'head' or 'leader', and the whole word names a chieftain.

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 頭; 头 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
頁頁yèhead
Sound part声符shēngfú
豆
豆dòu頭tóu
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 頭 shows 頁, meaning head, beside 豆 as a sound component; the simplified 头 is a later shorthand.

Open 头 →

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

子 is drawn as a baby with a large head, arms stretched out, and legs wrapped in a blanket.

Open 子 →
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