大姨媽
See also: 大姨妈
Chinese
| big, eldest | auntie | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| trad. (大姨媽) | 大 | 姨媽 | |
| simp. (大姨妈) | 大 | 姨妈 | |
Etymology
The euphemistic sense was originally a Cantonese colloquialism.
Pronunciation
- Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)+
- Hanyu Pinyin: dàyímā
- Zhuyin: ㄉㄚˋ ㄧˊ ㄇㄚ
- Tongyong Pinyin: dàyíma
- Wade–Giles: ta4-i2-ma1
- Yale: dà-yí-mā
- Gwoyeu Romatzyh: dahyimha
- Palladius: даима (daima)
- Sinological IPA (key): /tä⁵¹ i³⁵ mä⁵⁵/
- (Standard Chinese)+
- Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)+
- Jyutping: daai6 ji4 maa1
- Yale: daaih yìh mā
- Cantonese Pinyin: daai6 ji4 maa1
- Guangdong Romanization: dai6 yi4 ma1
- Sinological IPA (key): /taːi̯²² jiː²¹ maː⁵⁵/
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)+
- Wu
Noun
大姨媽
- (chiefly southern dialects) eldest maternal aunt (mother's eldest sister older than one's mother)
- (euphemistic, slang, humorous) Aunt Flo (a personification of the menstrual period or menstruation)
Usage notes
If one's mother is the eldest of the sisters, her oldest sister is not reckoned as a 大姨媽 but as 二姨.
Synonyms
- (eldest maternal aunt): 大姨 (dàyí)
Dialectal synonyms of 月經 (“menstruation; period”) [map]