吃饭

Etymology & Components

The Chinese word 吃饭 (chīfàn) for "eating a meal" is composed of two characters: 吃 (chī), meaning "to eat," and 饭 (fàn), meaning "cooked rice" or "meal." The character 吃 is derived from the oracle bone script, which depicts a person with a mouth open and a hand holding food. The character 饭 is derived from the oracle bone script, which depicts a bowl of rice with steam rising from it. Together, the two characters 吃饭 form a compound word that means "to eat a meal."The word 吃饭 is used in a variety of contexts in Chinese. It can be used to refer to the act of eating a meal, as in the sentence 我要吃饭了 (wǒ yào chīfàn le), which means "I'm going to eat." It can also be used to refer to the food that is eaten, as in the sentence 这饭真好吃 (zhè fàn zhēn hǎochī), which means "This food is really delicious."The word 吃饭 is an important part of Chinese culture. Eating is seen as a social activity, and it is common for people to eat together with family and friends. The word 吃饭 is also used in a number of idioms and proverbs, such as 民以食为天 (mín yǐ shí wéi tiān), which means "food is the most important thing for the people."