zǔ fù
grandfather [father's father]
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我祖父今年80岁了。
wǒ zǔfù jīnnián bāshí suì le.
My grandfather is 80 years old this year.
我祖父是一位退休教师。
wǒ zǔfù shì yī wèi tuìxiū jiàoshī.
My grandfather is a retired teacher.
我祖父很疼我。
wǒ zǔfù hěn téng wǒ.
My grandfather loves me very much.
爷爷 (yéye)
grandfather
外公 (wàigōng)
maternal grandfather
孙子 (sūnzi)
grandson
孙女 (sūnnǚ)
granddaughter
The Chinese word 祖父 (zǔfù) for "grandfather" is composed of two characters: 祖 (zǔ) and 父 (fù). The character 祖 originally meant "ancestor" or "forefather" and was often used in a religious context. It is composed of two parts: 示 (shì), which means "to sacrifice" or "to worship", and 且 (qiě), which is a phonetic component. The character 父 originally meant "father" and was used to refer to one's male parent. It is composed of two parts: 亻 (rén), which is a human radical, and 父 (fù), which is a phonetic component. When combined, the characters 祖 and 父 form the word 祖父, which specifically refers to one's paternal grandfather.
