芬芳 (fēn fāng) — (adjective) fragrant, sweet-smelling; (noun) fr… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

芬芳 is a literary word for a sweet, pleasant scent — more elegant and written than the everyday 香. Use it for flowers, tea, or air; 香水 is the bottled product, not the scent itself.

adjective

fragrantsweet-smelling

noun

fragrancesweet scent

Examples

芬芳。
Kōng qì zhōng piāo lái yí zhèn fēn fāng.
A waft of fragrance drifts through the air.
芬芳。
Tā de shēn shàng sàn fā chū dàn dàn de fēn fāng.
A faint fragrance emanates from her.
芬芳。
Zhè bēi chá yǒu yì zhǒng dú tè de fēn fāng.
This cup of tea has a unique fragrance.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

芬fēnfragrant

芳fāngfragrant

芬 and 芳 both evoke fragrance, together meaning sweet-smelling.

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

艸艸cǎograss

Sound part声符shēngfú

分

分fēn芬fēn

Same sound today

芬 is built from 艸, the grass form, and 分, which gives the sound.

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

艸艸cǎograss

Sound part声符shēngfú

方

方fāng芳fāng

Same sound today

芳 pairs 艸 (grass) with 方 (fāng); the 方 part gives the sound.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Senses

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