波波 (bō bō) — to be constantly on the run; to be busy moving… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

波波 (bōbo) is a Taiwanese colloquial bound form used after another verb (跑波波, 忙波波) to mean 'busy running around / on the go' — no direct Mainland equivalent. It is a reduplicative suffix, not a standalone word.

bound form

to be constantly on the runto be busy moving around

Examples

波波，。
Tā zhěng tiān bō bō, máng dé méi shí jiān chī fàn.
He's on the run all day, too busy to eat.
，波波。
Wèi le gōng zuò, tā yì zhí zài bō bō.
She's been constantly on the go for work.
，波波。
Tuì xiū hòu, tā zhōng yú bú yòng zài bō bō le.
After retiring, he finally doesn't have to keep running around.

Origin

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.

氵皮波

Meaning part形符xíngfú

氵Written in full as水shuǐwater

Sound part声符shēngfú

皮

皮pí波bō

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

The left side 氵 is water, and the right side 皮 gives the sound.

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

氵皮波

Meaning part形符xíngfú

氵Written in full as水shuǐwater

Sound part声符shēngfú

皮

皮pí波bō

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

The left side 氵 is water, and the right side 皮 gives the sound.

Appears in

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