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贩子 (fàn zi) — dealer, trafficker; (pejorative) monger, peddler

Definition

贩子 is a pejorative noun for a trafficker or monger — almost always used in fixed compounds like 毒品贩子, 军火贩子. The neutral everyday term for a small seller/peddler is 小贩.

noun
dealertrafficker(pejorative) mongerpeddler
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 贩子。
    Nà ge dú pǐn fàn zi bèi jǐng chá zhuā zhù le.
    That drug trafficker was caught by the police.
  • 贩子。
    Zhè xiē jūn huǒ fàn zi yīng gāi shòu dào fǎ lǜ de zhì cái.
    These arms dealers should face legal punishment.
  • ，。
    Tā shì yí gè xiǎo fàn zi, zài shì chǎng shàng mài shuǐ guǒ.
    He is a small peddler, selling fruit in the market.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

贩fàndeal in goods
子zǐperson

The trade sense “贩” takes “子” to name a person who deals in goods.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 販; 贩 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèicowry
Sound part声符shēngfú
反
反fǎn販fàn
Same sound today

The traditional form 販 combines 貝, a cowry shell, with 反 as a sound part; the simplified 贩 is a shorthand and its right side is not a historical component.

Open 贩 →

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

子 is drawn as a baby with a large head, arms stretched out, and legs wrapped in a blanket.

Open 子 →
Appears in
Business & CommerceProfessions & Jobs

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