小孩子 (xiǎo hái zǐ) — (colloquial) child, kid

Definition

noun

(colloquial) childkid

Measure word · 个

小孩子。
Nà ge xiǎo hái zǐ hěn kě ài.
That child is very cute.
小孩子。
Tā jiā yǒu sān gè xiǎo hái zǐ.
She has three children at home.
小孩子。
Zhè xiē xiǎo hái zǐ dōu zài shàng xué.
These children are all going to school.

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.

小孩child

偏正Modifier + head

小 means little and 孩 means child; 子 completes the familiar colloquial form for a child.

Characters in this word

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

The shape of 小 comes from three small dots, later elongated into its strokes; the apparent parts 八 and 丨 are a later way of seeing it.

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

子亥孩

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

亥

Same sound today

In 孩, the left part 子 shows a child, while the right part 亥 supplies the sound.

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.

Appears in