(péng yǒu) - friend in Mandarin

péngyǒu

Traditional: 朋友

HSK 1

#142 of 5,000 Core 1000

Translation

friend

Word origin

朋友 (péng yǒu) pairs two near-synonyms. 朋 (péng) once depicted two strings of cowrie shells of equal value and so meant a peer or companion, while 友 (yǒu) shows two right hands side by side, an image of friendship and cooperation. Together they mean 'friend'.

Origin: compound
Root: 朋 (péng, companion) + 友 (yǒu, friend)

Stroke order

朋

友

Examples

。

He is my best friend.

。

I went out with friends.

？

Do you have any Chinese friends?

。

I have many good friends.

。

At the weekend I climb mountains with friends.

朋友 (péng yǒu) means friend. It is used as a noun in everyday Mandarin speech.

Where this fits

The 1,000 most common Mandarin words

Where this word sits in the core vocabulary, and what to learn around it.

Mandarin vocabulary by HSK level

How many words each level actually needs, with real counts.

Mandarin learning guides

Podcasts, pronunciation traps and the things a word list cannot teach.

Used in

Grammar articles

(9)

Add to review queue

Track this word in your spaced-repetition queue and be tested on it at the right interval.

Go to my review queue

Mandarin · Free printables

朋友: worksheet, infographic and listicle

Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "朋友" (friend): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.

Free for members

The printable worksheets, infographics and PDFs are free with an account. Start a free week and download as many as you like.

Start your free week

This word is part of lesson 3.