Chinese Family Vocabulary Posted by sasha on Sep 21, 2017 in Culture, Vocabulary
Talking about your family is a great way to practice your Chinese at any level. However, the Chinese family tree is a bit complicated. Never fear, because we’re here to help! In this post you’ll learn all the Chinese family vocabulary you’ll ever need (and some that you won’t).
Chinese Family Vocabulary
我家很大
父母
父亲, 爸爸
母亲, 妈妈
兄弟姐妹
哥哥
弟弟
姐姐
妹妹
祖父母
爷爷，祖父
奶奶，祖母
外公，姥爷
外婆，姥姥
伯伯
叔叔
姑父
舅舅
姨父
姑妈
姑姑
伯母
婶婶
姨妈
阿姨
舅妈
表妹
表姐
表弟
表哥
配偶，爱人
丈夫, 老公
妻子，太太
孩子
儿子
女儿
孙子
孙子
孙女
外甥
姪子
外甥女
姪女
岳母
婆婆
岳父
公公
女婿
媳妇
姐夫
嫂子
fù mǔ
fù qīn, bà ba
mǔ qīn, mā mā
xiōng dì jiě mèi
gē gē
dì dì
jiě jiě
mèi mei
zǔ fù mǔ
yé yé, zǔ fù
nǎi nai, zǔ mǔ
wài gōng, lǎo yé
wài pó, lǎo lao
bó bo
shū shu
gū fu
jiù jiu
yí fu
gū mā
gū gū
bó mǔ
shěn shen
yí mā
Ā yí
jiù mā
biǎo mèi
biǎo jiě
biǎo dì
biǎo gē
pèi’ǒu, ài rén
zhàng fū, lǎo gōng
qī zi, tài tài
hái zi
ér zi
nǚ’ér
sūn zi
sūn zi
sūn nǚ
wài shēng
zhí zi
wài sheng nǚ
zhí nǚ
yuè mǔ
pó po
yuè fù
gōng gong
nǚ xù
xí fù
jiě fū
sǎo zi
parents
father, dad
mother, mom
siblings
older brother
younger brother
older sister
younger sister
grandparents
paternal grandpa
paternal grandma
maternal grandpa
maternal grandpa
father’s older brother
father’s younger brother
father’s sister’s husband
mother’s brother
mother’s sister’s husband
father’s older sister
father’s younger sister
father’s older brother’s wife
father’s younger brother’s wife
mother’s older sister
mother’s younger sister
mother’s brother’s wife
younger girl cousin
older girl cousin
younger boy cousin
older boy cousin
spouse
husband
wife
children
son
daughter
grandchildren
grandson
granddaughter
sister’s son
brother’s son
sister’s daughter
brother’s daughter
wife’s mother
husband’s mother
wife’s father
husband’s father
son-in-law
daughter-in-law
brother-in-law
sister-in-law
Confused yet? As you can see, the Chinese family tree gets a bit tricky when talking about relatives. Rather than try to memorize so many words, though, you can simply refer to your uncles as 叔叔 and your aunts as 阿姨. I once asked my students how they remember so many different words for family members. Their answer? They don’t! Some students of mine said that when they go home for Spring Festival, they have to seriously think about the exact relationship in order to get the correct word. So if you can’t quite remember all the different Chinese family vocabulary words, don’t worry!
Go ahead and start practicing by writing out your family tree and labeling it in Chinese. We’ll have another post up soon about how to ask questions and talk about family.
Build vocabulary, practice pronunciation, and more with Transparent Language Online. Available anytime, anywhere, on any device.
About the Author: sasha
Sasha is an English teacher, writer, photographer, and videographer from the great state of Michigan. Upon graduating from Michigan State University, he moved to China and spent 5+ years living, working, studying, and traveling there. He also studied Indonesian Language & Culture in Bali for a year. He and his wife run the travel blog Grateful Gypsies, and they're currently trying the digital nomad lifestyle across Latin America.
Leave a comment: