墳 (fén) - grave, tomb, burial mound & large burial site

墳Tone 2

fén ｜ 15 strokes ｜ radical:

恩丰

墳 · fén

grave, tomb, burial mound;

large burial site;

ancient term for high mound or embankment.

grave, tomb, burial moundlarge burial siteancient term for high mound or embankment.

Usage highlights

grave moundfamily graveancient tombtombstonetomb sweepingburial mound

Synonyms

  • 墓— grave, tomb
  • 塚— burial mound, tomb
  • 陵— imperial tomb, mausoleum

Antonyms

  • 生— life, living
  • 陽— yang, living world

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • They visited the ancient tomb (古墳).
  • The family grave (祖墳) is well maintained.
  • Archaeologists excavated a burial mound (墳墓).
  • The imperial mausoleum (皇陵墳) was heavily guarded.

Collocations

  • grave mound(墳墓)
  • family grave(祖墳)
  • ancient tomb(古墳)
  • tombstone(墳碑)
  • tomb sweeping(掃墳)
  • burial mound(墳塚)

Idioms

  • Three graves and five codes(三墳五典)
  • Self-digging one's grave(自掘墳墓)
  • Scattered graves and broken tombs(斷墳殘塋)
  • Wild graves in desolate mounds(荒塚野墳)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • In traditional Chinese culture, ancestral graves (祖墳) are considered important for maintaining family lineage and receiving blessings from ancestors.
  • The Qingming Festival involves tomb-sweeping (掃墳) rituals to honor ancestors and maintain graves.
  • Ancient Chinese texts mention 'Three Graves and Five Codes' (三墳五典) as legendary ancient texts, though their existence is debated.

FAQ