Chinese word

婶婶

Pronunciation

Pinyinshěn shěn

Meaning

  • nounaunt

Example

婶婶今天来我们家吃饭。shén shěn jīn tiān lái wǒ men jiā chī fàn

My aunt is coming to our house for dinner today.

Illustration for 婶婶 (aunt)

More examples

我昨天在路上遇到婶婶。wǒ zuó tiān zài lù shàng yù dào shén shěn

I met my aunt on the road yesterday.

Core concept

A familiar older woman joins the family circle through the father's younger brother, and the title can extend to a woman of the parents' generation.

Common phrases

  • 看望婶婶kàn wàng shén shěn

    visit my aunt

  • 给婶婶打电话gěi shén shěn dǎ diàn huà

    call my aunt

  • 和婶婶聊天hé shén shěn liáo tiān

    chat with my aunt

Similar words

伯母bó mǔ: The wife of one's father's older brother, treated as an aunt in the family.
嫂子sǎo zi: One's older brother's wife, regarded as a sister-in-law of the same generation.
姑姑gū gū: A female sibling of one's father.
阿姨ā yí: A female sibling of one's mother.

Definition in Chinese

对父亲的弟弟的妻子的称呼，有时也用来称呼与父母一辈年龄相仿的成年女性。duì fù qīn de dì di de qī zǐ de chēng hū yǒu shí yě yòng lái chēng hū yǔ fù mǔ yí bèi nián líng xiāng fǎng de chéng nián nǚ xìng

Word origin

婶婶 (shěnshěn, "aunt") is the repeated form of 婶 (shěn, "aunt"), which is formed from 女 (nǚ, "woman") + 审 (shěn, "sound element").

Usage tips

  • English uses one broad family term for many aunts, while Chinese kinship vocabulary often identifies both the family side and the marriage link.

Word lists with this word