Common Chinese Suffixes: -儿、-家、-们、-子 and -头
In today’s blog, we are going to introduce
5 common Chinese suffixes
which are -儿、-家、-们、-子 and -头. Let’s see how are they used in Chinese words and phrases.
The -儿 Suffix
儿(er2) is a retroflex final that is often transcribed as “r” is Pinyin. There are several situations where 儿 is added.
儿 could be added to nouns to indicate littleness and intimacy. For example:
小鸟儿(xiao3 niaor3, little bird)
小孩儿(xiao3 hair2, little child)
儿 could be added to verbs, adjectives or measure words to form nouns. For example:
盖儿(gair4, lid)
错儿(cuor4, mistake)
片儿(pianr4, piece)
Lastly, 儿 can also be added to certain verbs to make it colloquial. For example:
玩儿(wanr2, play)
The -家 Suffix
This suffix is used after certain nouns to indicate a specified group of people. For example:
小孩子家(xiao3 hai2 zi0 jia0, children)
姑娘家(gu1 niang0 jia0, girls)
This suffix could also be used to express certain occupations, for example:
作家(zuo4 jia1, writer)
画家(hua4 jia1, painter)
The -们 Suffix
This suffix is used after a personal pronoun or a noun to show plural number. For example:
女士们、先生们(nv3 shi4 men0, xian1 sheng0 men0, ladies & gentlemen)
你们(ni3 men0, you plural)
他们(ta1 men0, they)
我们(wo3 men0, us)
朋友们(peng2 you0 men0, friends)
The -子 Suffix
This is commonly used as a noun suffix, for example:
桌子(zhuo1 zi0, table)
帽子(mao4 zi0, hat)
鼻子(bi2 zi0, nose)
This can also be added after a verb or an adjective to form a noun, for example:
夹子(jia2 zi0, tongs)
胖子(pang4 zi0, fatty)
The -头 Suffix
This suffix is commonly added to a noun, for example:
石头(shi2 tou0, stone)
木头(mu4 tou0, wood)
骨头(gu3 tou0, bone)
It could also be added to a word of location, for example:
里头(li3 tou0, inside)
外头(wai4 tou0, outside)
上头(shang4 tou0, top)
下头(xia4 tou0, bottom)
To learn more about the use of suffixes in Chinese or Chinese in general, you can contact us for a free trial and consultation. We offer a variety of courses and are located in the convenient CBD area in Singapore. Stay tuned to this blog to learn Mandarin Chinese with us.