飱 (sūn) - Supper, evening meal & to eat

飱Tone 1

sūn ｜ 13 strokes ｜ radical:

树檀

飱 · sūn

Supper, evening meal;

to eat;

a simple meal.

Supper, evening mealto eata simple meal.

Usage highlights

SupperEvening mealTo eat a mealSimple mealTo have supperDesk meal

Synonyms

  • 餐— meal (more common modern term)
  • 晚饭— evening meal
  • 食— to eat; food

Antonyms

  • 饔— breakfast (morning meal)

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • We had a simple supper (飱) at home.
  • The term refers to eating a meal (飱食).
  • In ancient texts, it denotes the evening meal (夕飱).
  • He took his supper (用飱) before resting.

Collocations

  • Supper(飱)
  • Evening meal(夕飱)
  • To eat a meal(飱食)
  • Simple meal(素飱)
  • To have supper(用飱)
  • Desk meal(案飱)

Idioms

  • Breakfast and supper(饔飱不给)
  • Unable to provide breakfast and supper(饔飱不继)
  • To have only one meal a day(朝饔夕飱)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • In ancient China, 飱 referred specifically to the evening meal, contrasting with 饔 (breakfast).
  • It often implied a simple or light meal, not a formal feast.
  • The character is archaic and rarely used in modern daily language, mostly found in classical texts.

FAQ