The Addressee's Family Members
The following terms are still in use today:
| Traditional Chinese | Simplified Chinese | Pinyin | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 令尊 | 令尊 | lìngzūn | Your father | Literally means "the beautiful and respected one". "Lingzunweng" (Chinese: 令尊翁; pinyin: lìngzūnwēng) is sometimes used. |
| 令堂 | 令堂 | lìngtáng | Your mother | Literally means "the beautiful and dignified one". "Lingshoutang" (simplified Chinese: 令寿堂; traditional Chinese: 令壽堂; pinyin: lìngshòutáng) is sometimes used. |
| 令閫 | 令阃 | lìngkǔn | Your wife | Literally means "the beautiful door to the woman's room". |
| 令兄 | 令兄 | lìngxiōng | Your elder brother | Literally means "the beautiful elder brother". |
| 令郎 | 令郎 | lìngláng | Your son | Literally means "the beautiful young man". "Linggongzi" (Chinese: 令公子; pinyin: lìnggōngzǐ) is sometimes used. |
| 令愛 | 令爱 | lìng'ài | Your daughter | Literally means "the beautiful and beloved one". Another form of "ling'ai" (simplified Chinese: 令嫒; traditional Chinese: 令嬡; pinyin: lìng'ài) is sometimes used. |
| 令千金 | 令千金 | lìngqiānjīn | Your daughter | Literally means "the beautiful one who is worth a thousand gold". |
| 尊上 | 尊上 | zūnshàng | Your father | Literally means "the respected one above". |
| 尊公 | 尊公 | zūngōng | Your father | Literally means "the respected lord". "Zunjun" (Chinese: 尊君; pinyin: zūnjūn) and "zunfu" (Chinese: 尊府; pinyin: zūnfǔ) are sometimes used. |
| 尊堂 | 尊堂 | zūntáng | Your mother | Literally means "the respected and dignified one". |
| 尊親 | 尊亲 | zūnqīn | Your parents | Literally means "the respected and loved ones". |
| 尊駕 | 尊驾 | zūnjià | You, the respected one | Literally means "the respected procession". Used when referring to a guest or a person of higher social status. |
| 賢喬梓 | 贤乔梓 | xiánqiáozǐ | You, the virtuous father and son | |
| 賢伉儷 | 贤伉俪 | xiánkànglì | You, the virtuous husband and wife | |
| 賢昆仲 | 贤昆仲 | xiánkūnzhòng | You, the virtuous brothers | |
| 賢昆玉 | 贤昆玉 | xiánkūnyù | You, the virtuous sisters |
Read more about this topic: Chinese Honorifics, Addressing or Referring To Others
Famous quotes containing the words family and/or members:
“It is as when a migrating army of mice girdles a forest of pines. The chopper fells trees from the same motive that the mouse gnaws them,—to get his living. You tell me that he has a more interesting family than the mouse. That is as it happens.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“If the most significant characteristic of man is the complex of biological needs he shares with all members of his species, then the best lives for the writer to observe are those in which the role of natural necessity is clearest, namely, the lives of the very poor.”
—W.H. (Wystan Hugh)