shā fā
sofa
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我坐在沙发上看电视。
wǒ zuò zài shāfā shàng kàn diànshì.
I sit on the sofa and watch TV.
沙发上放着一些书。
shāfā shàng fàngzhe yīxiē shū.
There are some books on the sofa.
我们坐在沙发上聊天。
wǒmen zuò zài shāfā shàng liáotiān.
We sit on the sofa and chat.
沙發 (shā fā)
sofa
沙發椅 (shā fā yǐ)
couch
床 (chuáng)
bed
椅子 (yǐzi)
chair
The Chinese word 沙发 (shāfā) for "sofa" is derived from the Persian word "sofreh", which means "tablecloth" or "spread". The word "sofreh" was introduced to China during the Tang Dynasty (618-907) when there were frequent cultural exchanges between China and Persia. The Chinese adopted the word "sofreh" and modified it to 沙发 (shāfā) to refer to a piece of furniture used for sitting. The word 沙发 (shāfā) is composed of two Chinese characters: 沙 (shā), which means "sand", and 发 (fā), which means "to send out" or "to spread". The combination of these two characters suggests that a sofa is a piece of furniture that is soft and comfortable, like sand, and that it can be spread out to provide seating for multiple people.
