Meaning of 生活费
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- cost of living
- living expenses
- alimony
How to use 生活费
生活费 is most often used for the money someone needs or receives to cover daily needs, such as the monthly allowance parents give a student. It can also mean the general cost of living in a place, and in legal contexts it can refer to support payments. Example: 我每个月的生活费是两千块。(Wǒ měi gè yuè de shēnghuófèi shì liǎngqiān kuài.) My living expenses are two thousand yuan a month.
Break it into two parts: 生活 (shēnghuó) means "life" or "daily living," and 费 (fèi) means "fee" or "expense." Put them together and you get the money it costs to live: living expenses.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 费 (fèi, fee) with 贵 (guì, expensive) because both have 贝 at the bottom. 生活贵 is not a word. Also keep the tones straight: shēng is first tone, huó is second, and fèi is fourth.
生活费 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.
生 shēng · to grow · 5 strokes
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活 huó · to live · 9 strokes
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费 fèi · to cost · 9 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 生活费.
| 先生 | xiānsheng | teacher; gentleman; sir; mister (Mr.) |
| 医生 | yīshēng | doctor; medical practitioner |
| 生气 | shēngqì | to get angry; to be furious; vitality; liveliness |
| 学生 | xuéshēng | student; schoolchild |
| 生日 | shēngrì | birthday |
| 生病 | shēngbìng | to fall ill |
| 女生 | nǚshēng | schoolgirl; female student |
| 男生 | nánshēng | schoolboy; male student |
| 大学生 | dàxuéshēng | university student; college student |
| 小学生 | xiǎoxuéshēng | primary school student; schoolchild |
| 中学生 | zhōngxuéshēng | middle-school student; high school student |
| 生活 | shēnghuó | to live; life |
Questions about 生活费
What does 生活费 mean?
生活费 (shēnghuófèi) means "cost of living; living expenses" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 生活费?
生活费 is made of 3 characters: 生 (5 strokes), 活 (9 strokes), 费 (9 strokes). That is 23 strokes in total.
Is 生活费 an HSK word?
Yes. 生活费 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 生活费 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 生活费 is written 生活費.
What is the difference between 生活费 and 生活水平?
生活费 is the amount of money spent or needed for living. 生活水平 (shēnghuó shuǐpíng) means standard of living, which is how well people live. A city can have a high 生活费 without everyone having a high 生活水平.
Which verbs are commonly used with 生活费?
Common pairings are 给生活费 (gěi, to give), 寄生活费 (jì, to send), 交生活费 (jiāo, to pay), and 挣生活费 (zhèng, to earn). For example, 父母给我寄生活费 means "my parents send me living expenses."