figure from behind; view of someone's back
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 5 examplesnoun
view of someone's back; figure seen from behind
Often evokes feelings of departure, loneliness, or nostalgia. The diminutive suffix '儿' is optional and more common in Northern dialects. This word was famously used in Zhu Ziqing's prose essay 'Father's Back'.
Wǒ我
kàn看
zhe着
tā他
yuǎn远
qù去
de的
bèi背
yǐng影
，
xīn心
lǐ里
yī一
zhèn阵
suān酸
chǔ楚
。
Watching his receding figure walk away, a pang of sorrow struck my heart.
Hūn昏
huáng黄
de的
lù路
dēng灯
xià下
，
tā她
de的
bèi背
yǐng影
xiǎn显
dé得
gé格
wài外
gū孤
dān单
。
Under the dim streetlight, her silhouette looked especially lonely.
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Fù父
qīn亲
de的
bèi背
yǐng影
shì是
Zhū朱
Zì自
qīng清
sǎn散
wén文
lǐ里
yī一
gè个
jīng经
diǎn典
de的
yì意
xiàng象
。
Father's back is a classic image in Zhu Ziqing's prose.
Rén人
qún群
lǐ里
，
wǒ我
zhǐ只
rèn认
chū出
le了
tā他
de的
bèi背
yǐng影
r儿
。
In the crowd, I only recognized him by his back.
Nà那
ge个
shú熟
xī悉
de的
bèi背
yǐng影
xiāo消
shī失
zài在
jiē街
jiǎo角
。
That familiar figure disappeared around the street corner.