孙辈
sūnbèi
The English phrase "grandchildren" is translated into Chinese as 孙辈 (sūnbèi).
孙辈 is used to refer to the children of a person's own children.
What does it mean word for word?
The term is composed of 孙, meaning grandchild and 辈, meaning generation or category.
Which one should you use?
While 孙辈 is a gender-neutral collective term, speakers use the specific terms 孙子 (sūnzi) for grandsons and 孙女 (sūnnǚ) when they wish to distinguish between the genders.
How do you pronounce it?
sūnbèi
Did you know?
- If you call someone 孙子 (sūnzi) in a heated argument rather than referring to a relative, it becomes a powerful insult meaning 'the grandson of a dog'.
- The term 外孙 contains the character 外, meaning 'outside', reflecting a historical patriarchal view that children of daughters belonged to their father's clan.
- In Chinese, the term for 'grandchild' changes completely depending on whether the child is from the son's or daughter's side. For a daughter's child, one would use 外孙 (wàisūn), where 外 means 'outside'.
Examples in context
- 我祖父母有三个孙子孙女My grandparents have three grandchildren.
- 他很疼爱自己的孙辈。Tā hěn téng'ài zìjǐ de sūnbèi.He dotes on his grandchildren.
- 这代人都有孙辈了。Zhè dài rén dōu yǒu sūnbèi le.This generation all has grandchildren now.
Example conversation
Two friends are talking about a family reunion.
- 浩然 Haoran佳怡，你这次打算带孙辈一起去吗？Jiāyí, nǐ zhè cì dǎsuàn dài sūnbèi yīqǐ qù ma?Jiayi, do you plan to bring the grandchildren with you this time?
- 佳怡 Jiayi是的，浩然，他们都很期待。Shì de, Hàorán, tāmen dōu hěn qīdài.Yes, Haoran, they are all looking forward to it.
- 浩然 Haoran那一定很热闹。Nà yīdìng hěn rènao.That will certainly be very lively.
- 佳怡 Jiayi没错，孙辈让家里充满欢笑。Méicuò, sūnbèi ràng jiālǐ chōngmǎn huānxiào.Exactly, grandchildren fill the home with laughter.
