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身边 (shēn biān) — by one's side; on hand; (with) one

Definition

身边 means 'by one's side / on one' — about people or things physically with you (a wallet, keys, a person). 旁边 is the place next to something else; 手头 emphasizes what's available to use right now.

noun
by one's sideon hand(with) one

Examples

  • 身边。
    Wǒ shēn biān yǒu yí bù shǒu jī.
    I have a cell phone with me.
  • 身边。
    Tā shēn biān zǒng shì dài zhe yào shi.
    He always carries keys with him.
  • 身边？
    Nǐ shēn biān yǒu qián bāo ma?
    Do you have a wallet on you?

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.

身shēnbody
边biānside

身 is body or self, and 边 is side, so it means by one's side.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 邊; 边 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辶Written in full as辵chuòwalking; movement
Sound part声符shēngfú
臱
臱mián邊biān(r)
Same sound today

The traditional form 邊 pairs 辶 (walking; movement) with the sound part 臱; the simplified 边 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the original parts.

Open 边 →
Appears in
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