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富贵 (fù guì) — wealth and high social status; riches and honor

Definition

富贵 (fùguì) pairs wealth (富) with honor or noble rank (贵), a literary term for worldly success. Often appears in fixed phrases like 荣华富贵 and carries a faintly classical tone.

noun
wealth and high social statusriches and honor

Examples

  • 富贵，。
    Tā yì shēng zhuī qiú fù guì, zuì hòu què gǎn dào kōng xū.
    He pursued wealth and honor all his life, but ended up feeling empty.
  • 。
    Róng huá fù guì bú guò shì guò yǎn yún yān.
    Glory, splendor, wealth, and rank are nothing but fleeting clouds.
  • 富贵。
    Zhēn zhèng de fù guì zài yú nèi xīn de píng jìng.
    True wealth and honor lie in inner peace.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

富fùrich
贵guìnoble

富 and 贵 are parallel qualities, rich and noble, giving wealth and high rank.

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
宀宀mián
Sound part声符shēngfú
畐
畐fú富fù
Same sound today

富 pairs 宀, a roof-shaped part, with 畐, which gives the sound fú.

Open 富 →

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 貴; 贵 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèimoney cowrie
Sound part声符shēngfú
臾
臾yú貴guì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 貴 uses 貝, a money cowrie, for meaning and 臾 for sound. The simplified 贵 is a later shorthand, and its parts are not the old parts.

Open 贵 →
Appears in
Money & Currency

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