Meaning of 妻子
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- wife
- wife and children
How to use 妻子
妻子 (qīzi) is a fairly formal or neutral word for wife, common in writing, news, and polite introductions. In everyday speech many people say 老婆 (lǎopo) or 太太 (tàitai) instead. Example: 他的妻子是医生。(Tā de qīzi shì yīshēng.) His wife is a doctor.
妻 (qī) has 女 (nǚ, woman) at the bottom, so think of the woman at the base of the household. Add the common noun ending 子 (zi) and you get 妻子 (qīzi), wife.
Common mistake: Learners often read 妻子 with a full third tone on 子 as qīzǐ, but that reading is a different, literary word meaning wife and children. For wife, 子 is neutral tone: qīzi.
妻子 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
妻 qī · wife · 8 strokes
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子 zi · noun suffix · 3 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 妻子.
Questions about 妻子
What does 妻子 mean?
妻子 (qīzi) means "wife" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 妻子?
妻子 is made of 2 characters: 妻 (8 strokes), 子 (3 strokes). That is 11 strokes in total.
Is 妻子 an HSK word?
Yes. 妻子 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 妻子, 老婆 and 太太?
妻子 (qīzi) is neutral and works in formal or written contexts. 老婆 (lǎopo) is casual and affectionate, used between spouses or friends. 太太 (tàitai) is polite and often used when referring to someone else's wife, as in 王太太 (Wáng tàitai), Mrs. Wang.
What is the word for husband that pairs with 妻子?
The matching formal word is 丈夫 (zhàngfu), husband. Together they appear in phrases like 丈夫和妻子 (zhàngfu hé qīzi), husband and wife, and the shorter 夫妻 (fūqī) means a married couple.