爷 meaning and stroke order
Grandfather, old man
How to write 爷, stroke by stroke
6 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
- 1
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Meaning of 爷
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- grandpa
- old gentleman
How 爷 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Father.
父 gives the meaning and 耶 hints at the sound.
Radical: 父 (father), shared by 5 characters on this site.
How to remember 爷
爷 has 父 (fù, father) on top, so it is a family man of the father's generation or older. The traditional form 爺 adds 耶 (yē) for the sound, and the simplified form keeps only the 卩 part of it below 父.
On its own 爷 is rare. It mostly appears doubled as 爷爷 (yéye) for your father's father, or in words for older men and people of rank. Example: 我爷爷今年八十岁。 (Wǒ yéye jīnnián bāshí suì.) My grandpa is eighty this year.
Common mistake: Learners often use 爷爷 for both grandfathers. In northern Mandarin your mother's father is 姥爷 (lǎoye), also called 外公 (wàigōng). Also note that in 爷爷 the second syllable is neutral tone: yéye, not yéyé.
Common words with 爷
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 爷爷 | yéye | (coll.) paternal grandfather; grandpa | HSK 1 |
| 大爷 | dàye | arrogant idler; self-centered show-off | HSK 4 |
| 姥爷 | lǎoye | (coll.) mother's father; maternal grandfather | HSK 7-9 |
| 老爷 | lǎoye | (respectful) lord; master | |
| 老天爷 | lǎotiānyé | God; Heavens | |
| 少爷 | shàoye | son of the boss; young master of the house | |
| 王爷 | wángye | prince; marquis | |
| 老爷爷 | lǎoyéye | (polite) elderly man | |
| 爷们 | yémen | menfolk (collective term for men of different generations); husbands and their fathers etc | |
| 老爷子 | lǎoyézi | my (your etc) old father; polite appellation for an elderly male | |
| 师爷 | shīyé | (historical) privately hired legal or administrative advisor to a government official; tea | |
| 老爷车 | lǎoyechē | classic car | |
| 爷们儿 | yémenr | erhua variant of 爺們|爷们[ye2 men5] |
爷 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 爷
How many strokes are in 爷?
爷 is written with 6 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 爷 mean?
爷 (yé) means grandfather, old man. A common word with it is 爷爷 (yéye), meaning "(coll.) paternal grandfather; grandpa".
How do you pronounce 爷?
爷 is pronounced yé, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 爷?
The radical of 爷 is 父, which carries the idea of "father". Dictionaries list 爷 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 爷?
The traditional form of 爷 is 爺. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 爷 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 爷 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 爷 is part of the HSK 1 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 2.
How do I politely address an old man I don't know in Chinese?
Children and young people often say 老爷爷 (lǎoyéye) or 爷爷 to a much older man. In northern China, 大爷 (dàye) is a common friendly way to address a man around your father's age or older, though as a noun it can also mean an arrogant idler.
What does 老天爷 mean?
老天爷 (lǎotiānyé) means Heaven or God in a folk sense. People use it in exclamations like 我的老天爷 (wǒ de lǎotiānyé), roughly like saying 'Oh my God' in English.