A senior woman in the family line. An older sister; also a polite term for a young woman. A woman (女) beside an ancestral tablet (且) — the elder sister in the family.
Chinese puts the possessive before the noun: 'my older sister' is 我姐, not 姐我.
When counting, 姐 is normally reduplicated to 姐姐. 一个姐 sounds incomplete.
姐 means older sister; 妹 means younger sister.
Both refer to sisters, but age matters. 姐 is used for an older sister, while 妹 is used for a younger sister. In Chinese, age hierarchy is important, so these words are not interchangeable.
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Older sister | 姐姐 | 妹妹 |
| Younger sister | 妹妹 | 姐姐 |
| Addressing an older female | 姐姐 | 妹妹 |
姐姐 is the standard everyday word for 'older sister'; 姐 alone is mostly used in compounds or direct address.
In Mandarin, many kinship terms are reduplicated to form the common noun, like 爸爸 and 妈妈. 姐姐 follows this pattern. Using 姐 by itself can sound incomplete in some contexts, though it appears in words like 大姐 or 姐妹.
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Everyday noun | 姐姐 | 姐 |
| Direct address | 姐姐 | 姐 |
| In compounds | 大姐, 姐妹 | 姐姐姐 |
This playful rhyme helps you learn family words in Chinese. Practice saying who's who with simple questions and answers!
这个女孩子是 我姐 。
哥哥和弟弟， 姐姐 和妹妹也是我家人，也是好朋友。
This simple story introduces you to a family and what each member likes to do. Learn helpful words for food and daily activities as you read about Grandpa, Grandma, Mom, Dad, and the kids.
姐姐 买衣服。
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