分手 meaning in English

fēnshǒu

to part company; to split up

HSK 48 strokes

Meaning of 分手

Definitions from CC-CEDICT.

fēnshǒu

to part company
to split up
to break up

How to use 分手

分手 is most often used for ending a romantic relationship, but it can also mean simply parting ways with someone after meeting. It is a verb-object word, so you usually say 和/跟 someone 分手 rather than putting the person after it. Example: 他们上个月分手了。(Tāmen shàng ge yuè fēnshǒu le.) They broke up last month.

分 (fēn) means to divide and 手 (shǒu) means hand. Picture two people who were holding hands now dividing their hands apart, and you have a breakup.

Common mistake: Learners often say 我分手他 (wǒ fēnshǒu tā), copying English "I broke up with him." The correct form is 我跟他分手了 (wǒ gēn tā fēnshǒu le), because 分手 cannot take a direct object.

分手 in example sentences

Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.

我wǒ要yào跟gēn你nǐ分fēn手shǒu了le。

I want to break up with you.

我wǒ想xiǎng和hé她tā分fēn手shǒu。

I mean to break up with her.

如rú果guǒ我wǒ没méi会huì错cuò意yì的de话huà，你nǐ是shì想xiǎng和hé我wǒ分fēn手shǒu。

If I've understood you right, you want to break up with me!

我wǒ打dǎ算suàn与yǔ她tā分fēn手shǒu。

I plan to break up with her.

我wǒ们men分fēn手shǒu吧ba。

We should break up.

Stroke order for each character

Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.

分 fēn · to divide · 4 strokes

手 shǒu · hand · 4 strokes

Related words

Words that share a character with 分手.

手机	shǒujī	cell phone; mobile phone
洗手间	xǐshǒujiān	toilet; lavatory
分钟	fēnzhōng	minute
部分	bùfen	part; portion; piece; Taiwan pr. [bu4fen4]
一部分	yī bùfen	portion; part of
十分	shífēn	very; completely
分开	fēnkāi	to separate; to part
大部分	dàbùfen	the greater part; the majority; most; Taiwan pr. [da4bu4fen4]
手表	shǒubiǎo	wristwatch
分数	fēnshù	(exam) grade; mark
举手	jǔshǒu	to raise a hand; to put up one's hand (as signal)
手指	shǒuzhǐ	finger

Questions about 分手

What does 分手 mean?

分手 (fēnshǒu) means "to part company; to split up".

How do you write 分手?

分手 is made of 2 characters: 分 (4 strokes), 手 (4 strokes). That is 8 strokes in total.

Is 分手 an HSK word?

Yes. 分手 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.

What is the difference between 分手 and 离婚?

分手 (fēnshǒu) is a general breakup, usually between dating partners. 离婚 (líhūn) specifically means to get a legal divorce from a spouse.

How do you say "we broke up" and "we got back together" in Chinese?

"We broke up" is 我们分手了 (wǒmen fēnshǒu le). Getting back together is often 复合 (fùhé), as in 我们复合了 (wǒmen fùhé le).