外公

wài gōng

HSK 3.0 Level 5 Noun Uncommon

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Definitions

1. (coll.) mother's father
2. maternal grandfather

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Word relationships

Counterparts

1 item

• 外婆 wài pó 外婆 wài pó (coll.) mother's mother maternal grandmother: (coll.) mother's mother

Register variants

1 item

• 姥爷 lǎoye 姥爷 lǎoye grandpa (mother's father) dialectal variant for maternal grandfather: grandpa (mother's father)

Related words

1 item

• 爷爷 yé ye 爷爷 yé ye (coll.) father's father paternal grandfather: (coll.) father's father

Usage notes

Common mistakes

外公 refers specifically to one's maternal grandfather, not paternal grandfather (爷爷). Using 外公 for father's father is a mistake.

Formality

外公 is the common colloquial term for maternal grandfather. In formal writing, 外祖父 may be used.

Example Sentences

2 shown

我 外公 很喜欢喝茶。

My maternal grandfather really likes drinking tea.

他很像他 外公 。

Source: Tatoeba.org (ID 6092215)

Sentence data courtesy of Tatoeba.org. AI-generated examples are marked with this icon.

Child Words of 外公

• 公 公 gōng: public
• 外 外 wài: outside