HSK5 – Family and Feelings Words

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Chinese Vocabulary · 中文词汇

Family and Feelings Words in Chinese

家庭与情感词汇 jiātíng yǔ qínggǎn cíhuì

In English, “grandma” is just “grandma.” In Chinese, you have to say which side of the family she is on: your mother’s mother is 外婆 (wàipó), while your father’s mother is 奶奶 (nǎinai). The same goes for grandpa, aunts, uncles and cousins. But there’s a catch: many young people today don’t like the character 外 (wài) (“outside”), so in Taiwan we usually switch to Taiwanese and call them 阿公 (āgōng) and 阿嬷 (āmà) instead. This lesson starts with family words before moving on to the feelings that come with family.

Family and relatives

Family and Relatives Words in Chinese

ChinesePinyinEnglishKoreanJapanese
儿女érnǚSons and daughters; children아들딸息子と娘
夫妇fūfùMarried couple; husband and wife부부夫婦
老公lǎogōngHusband (informal)남편夫
姥姥lǎolaoMaternal grandmother (mostly northern China)외할머니母方の祖母
老婆lǎopoWife (informal)아내妻
姥爷lǎoyeMaternal grandfather (mostly northern China)외할아버지母方の祖父
亲情qīnqíngFamily affection; kinship bond가족애家族の情
亲人qīnrénFamily member; loved one가족; 친족身内; 家族
太太tàitaiWife; Mrs.부인奥さん
外公wàigōngMaternal grandfather외할아버지母方の祖父
外婆wàipóMaternal grandmother외할머니母方の祖母
子女zǐnǚChildren (sons and daughters)자녀子女; 子供

姥姥 (lǎolao) and 姥爷 (lǎoye) vs 外婆 (wàipó) and 外公 (wàigōng)

All four mean maternal grandparents. 姥姥 (lǎolao) and 姥爷 (lǎoye) are mostly heard in northern mainland China, while 外婆 (wàipó) and 外公 (wàigōng) are understood everywhere and are the standard formal choice in Taiwan. In everyday speech, though, Taiwanese families often use 阿公 (āgōng) and 阿嬤 (āmà) instead (see above).

老公 (lǎogōng), 老婆 (lǎopo) and 太太 (tàitai)

老公 (lǎogōng) and 老婆 (lǎopo) are casual, everyday words for “husband” and “wife.” 太太 (tàitai) is more polite and can also mean “Mrs.” (for example, 王太太 (Wáng tàitai)). In Taiwan, 老婆 is usually pronounced lǎopó, while mainland China says lǎopo.

Putting it all together

Examples

我的wǒ de外婆wàipó和hé外公wàigōng住zhù在zài农村nóngcūn，我wǒ每年měi nián都dōu回去huíqù看kàn他们tāmenMy maternal grandparents live in the countryside, and I go back to see them every year.

这对zhè duì夫妇fūfù有yǒu两个liǎng ge儿女érnǚ，一家人yì jiārén的de亲情qīnqíng很hěn深shēnThis couple has two children, and the family bond is very deep.

Heart and mood

Feelings and Emotions Words in Chinese

ChinesePinyinEnglishKoreanJapanese
惊喜jīngxǐPleasant surprise기쁜 놀라움嬉しい驚き
乐观lèguānOptimistic낙관적인楽観的な
恋爱liàn’àiRomantic love; to be in love연애恋愛
亲切qīnqièWarm; kind; friendly친절한親切な
情感qínggǎnFeeling; emotion정감; 감정感情
情绪qíngxùMood; emotion기분; 정서気分; 情緒
失恋shīliànTo be dumped; heartbreak실연失恋
痛苦tòngkǔPain; suffering; painful고통苦しみ; 苦しい
同情tóngqíngSympathy; to sympathize동정同情
消极xiāojíNegative; passive소극적인消極的な
遗憾yíhànRegret; pity유감残念
勇气yǒngqìCourage용기勇気

Putting it all together

Examples

听到tīngdào这个zhè ge消息xiāoxī，她tā很hěn遗憾yíhàn，但是dànshì她tā还是háishì很hěn乐观lèguānHearing the news, she was very sorry, but she was still very optimistic.

失恋shīliàn以后yǐhòu，他的tā de情绪qíngxù很hěn不好bù hǎo，朋友péngyou给了gěi le他tā很多hěn duō同情tóngqíng和hé勇气yǒngqìAfter the breakup, his mood was very bad, and his friends gave him a lot of sympathy and courage.

Test yourself

Vocabulary Quiz

HSK5
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