TongTong
Sign in

嫂子 (sǎo zi) — older brother's wife; sister-in-law (colloquial)

Definition

嫂子 is the colloquial term for your older brother's wife — only your older brother's wife. It is a kinship term, not a generic word for sister-in-law (younger brother's wife is 弟妹).

noun
older brother's wifesister-in-law (colloquial)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 嫂子。
    Wǒ sǎo zi duì wǒ tè bié hǎo.
    My sister-in-law is especially good to me.
  • 嫂子，？
    sǎo zi, Nǐ míng tiān yǒu kòng ma?
    Sister-in-law, do you have time tomorrow?
  • 嫂子。
    Tā sǎo zi shì gè yī shēng.
    His sister-in-law is a doctor.

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.

嫂sǎoolder brother's wife
子zǐcolloquial form ending

嫂 names the older brother's wife; 子 makes the common colloquial form 嫂子.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
女女nǚwoman
Sound part声符shēngfú
叟
叟sǒu嫂sǎo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

嫂 has 女, showing it refers to a woman, and 叟, which gives the pronunciation.

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 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Family & Kinship

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