Chinese word

丈夫

Pronunciation

Pinyinzhàng fū

Meaning

  • nounhusband

Example

我丈夫今天不在家。wǒ zhàng fū jīn tiān bú zài jiā

My husband isn't home today.

Illustration for 丈夫 (husband)

More examples

我经常和丈夫一起散步。wǒ jīng cháng hé zhàng fū yì qǐ sàn bù

I often take walks with my husband.

Core concept

A married woman's male partner, especially in a formal or neutral description of family life.

Common phrases

  • 和丈夫一起hé zhàng fū yì qǐ

    with one's husband

  • 丈夫不在家zhàng fū bú zài jiā

    one's husband is not at home

  • 对丈夫要求高duì zhàng fū yāo qiú gāo

    have high standards for one's husband

Similar words

老公lǎo gōng: An informal and affectionate term for one's husband.
爱人ài rén: A term for one's spouse that does not specify the spouse's gender.
先生xiān shēng: A polite form of address for a man.

Definition in Chinese

指婚姻关系中的男性配偶，即作为妻子的那一方，常见于书面或正式语境。zhǐ hūn yīn guān xì zhōng de nán xìng pèi ǒu jí zuò wéi qī zǐ de nà yì fāng cháng jiàn yú shū miàn huò zhèng shì yǔ jìng

Word origin

The older meaning of 丈夫 (zhàngfū, "adult man") gradually narrowed until it referred specifically to a woman's male spouse.

Usage tips

  • The first syllable uses the falling fourth tone and the second uses the high-level first tone, so tone placement is important in careful speech.

Other meanings

  • spousenoun

Opposites

Word lists with this word