弟妹 (dì mèi) — younger brother's wife (sister-in-law)

Definition

noun

younger brother's wife (sister-in-law)

Measure word · 个

弟妹，。
Zhè shì wǒ de dì mèi, tā shì yí wèi yī shēng.
This is my younger brother's wife; she is a doctor.
弟妹。
Wǒ de dì mèi jīng cháng bāng zhù wǒ.
My younger brother's wife often helps me.
，弟妹。
Shàng ge yuè, wǒ de dì mèi shēng le yí gè hái zi.
Last month, my younger brother's wife gave birth to a child.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

弟dìyounger brother

妹mèifemale relation

弟妹 names the wife of 弟, with 妹 showing the female relation.

Characters in this word

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

弟 pictures a spear handle wrapped in a leather strap. The wrapping showed order, and that meaning was extended to a younger brother.

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

女未妹

Meaning part形符xíngfú

女女nǚfemale, woman

Sound part声符shēngfú

未

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

妹 combines 女, a woman, with 未, which gives the sound.

Appears in