Chinese Conversation · Level 14
90 words
Chinese word
表哥
Pronunciation
Pinyinbiǎo gē
Meaning
- nounolder male cousin
Example
我的表哥比我大三岁。wǒ de biǎo gē bǐ wǒ dà sān suì
My older male cousin is three years older than me.
More examples
我经常给表哥发照片。wǒ jīng cháng gěi biǎo gē fā zhào piān
I often send photos to my older male cousin.
Core concept
An older male cousin in the wider family branch, marked by both his sex and his age relative to the speaker.
Common phrases
跟表哥聊天gēn biǎo gē liáo tiān
chat with older male cousin
给表哥打电话gěi biǎo gē dǎ diàn huà
call older male cousin
Similar words
堂哥táng gē: An older male cousin from the father's side of the family, often sharing the same surname.
表弟biǎo dì: A younger male cousin, usually from the mother's side or a family branch with a different surname.
堂弟táng dì: A younger male cousin from the father's side of the family, often sharing the same surname.
表姐biáo jiě: An older female cousin, usually from the mother's side or a family branch with a different surname.
Definition in Chinese
比自己年长的男性表亲，通常指异姓或母方的同辈男性bǐ zì jǐ nián zhǎng de nán xìng biǎo qīn tōng cháng zhǐ yì xìng huò mǔ fāng de tóng bèi nán xìng
Word origin
表哥 (biǎogē, "older male cousin") combines 表 (biǎo, "outside family branch") with 哥 (gē, "older brother") to identify an older male cousin.
Usage tips
- English family vocabulary usually leaves age and sex unstated, while Chinese kinship labels can build both details into one term.
Other meanings
- cousinnoun
- male cousinnoun
Opposites
- 表弟biǎo dìyounger male cousinnoun