Definition
表姐妹 refers to female cousins who are children of your mother's siblings or your father's sisters — cousins who do not share your surname (different from 堂姐妹, who share your surname as they come from your father's brothers). This distinction is important in Chinese family terminology; English simply uses 'female cousins' for all. When you want to specify a particular cousin, you use 表姐 (older) or 表妹 (younger).
n.
female cousins on the mother's side or from the father's sister (different surname)
Examples
- 表姐妹，，。Wǒ de biǎo jiě mèi zhōng, biǎojiě yǐjīng gōngzuò le, biǎomèi hái zài shàngxué.Among my female cousins, the older one is already working, and the younger one is still in school.
- ，表姐妹。Chūnjié de shíhou, wǒ chángcháng hé jǐ ge biǎo jiě mèi yìqǐ chūqù wán.During the Spring Festival, I often go out to play with a few female cousins.
- 表姐妹，。Tā yǒu hěnduō biǎo jiě mèi, dàn zhǐ yǒu yí ge qīn mèimei.She has many female cousins, but only one biological younger sister.
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