花白 (huā bái) — gray and white (of hair); grizzled

Definition

A descriptive adjective meaning 'gray mixed with white' — used almost exclusively for aging hair or beards. The verb label reflects its use with 了 (头发花白了) to describe the resulting state.

verb
gray and white (of hair)grizzled

Examples

  • 花白。
    Tā de tóu fa yǐ jīng huā bái le.
    His hair has already turned gray and white.
  • 花白。
    Nà wèi lǎo rén liú zhe huā bái de hú zi.
    That old man has a grizzled beard.
  • ，花白。
    Suī rán cái sì shí suì, tā de bìn jiǎo jiù huā bái le.
    Although only forty, his temples have already turned gray.

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.

花huāmottled
白báiwhite

花 gives the sense of mottled, and 白 gives the white hair color.

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
艹Written in full as艸cǎograss; plant
Sound part声符shēngfú
化
化huà花
Same sound today

花 pairs 艹 (grass; plant) with 化, which gives the sound.

Open 花 →

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

白 is thought to picture either an acorn or a human head.

Open 白 →

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