身披 (shēn pī) — to be draped in; to wear (over the shoulders) — used in literary or formal contexts

Definition

A literary/archaic verb meaning 'to be draped in' or 'to wear' (over the shoulders) — often used for dramatic or poetic effect with clothing, armor, or even natural cover like snow. Far more formal than everyday 穿.

verb
to be draped into wear (over the shoulders) — used in literary or formal contexts

Examples

  • 身披，。
    Tā shēn pī zhe yí jiàn hēi sè de dà yī, kàn qǐ lái hěn wēi fēng.
    He was wearing a black overcoat, looking very imposing.
  • 身披，。
    Shān fēng shēn pī zhe hòu hòu de bái xuě, zài yáng guāng xià shǎn shǎn fā guāng.
    The mountain peaks were covered with thick white snow, glistening in the sunlight.
  • 身披，。
    Zhè wèi yǒng shì shēn pī kǎi jiǎ, shǒu chí cháng jiàn.
    This warrior was wearing armor and holding a long sword.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
主谓zhǔwèiSubject + predicate

A small sentence frozen into a word: something, and what it does or is.

身shēnbody
披pīdrape

身, the body, and 披, to drape, combine to mean be draped on the body.

Characters in this word

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

The shape of 身 comes from a drawing of a pregnant woman.

Open 身 →

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
扌Written in full as手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
皮
皮pí披pī
Same sound today

披 pairs 扌 (hand) with 皮, which gives the sound.

Open 披 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.