甥女 (shēng nǚ) — niece (sister's daughter)

Definition

A specific kinship term meaning 'niece' — but only your sister's daughter. Compare 外甥女 (wàishēngnǚ), the term for your brother's daughter.

noun
niece (sister's daughter)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 甥女。
    Wǒ jiě jie de nǚ ér shì wǒ de shēng nǚ.
    My sister's daughter is my niece.
  • 甥女。
    Zhè ge shēng nǚ shì wǒ mèi mei de hái zi.
    This niece is my younger sister's child.
  • 甥女。
    Wǒ de shēng nǚ jīn nián shàng xiǎo xué le.
    My niece started elementary school this year.

Origin

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.

甥shēngsister's child
女nǚfemale

'甥' (sister's child) and '女' (female) together mean a female child of a sister.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 甥 →

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

女 shows a woman with folded arms, kneeling or standing. In the modern form the figure faces right, and the small enclosed part is what is left of one arm.

Open 女 →

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