孀 (shuāng): widow

Meanings

丈夫死后，她孀居了许多年。

Shuāng

After her husband died she lived as a widow for many years.

邻居的孀妇有个小儿子。

Línjū de shuāng

A neighbor's widow had a young son.

register

孀 is a literary, bound character for a widow, seen in 孀妇 (widow) and 孀居 (to live as a widow). Everyday speech uses 寡妇.

radical

女 nǚ

woman

The woman radical 女 on the left fixes the meaning: a widow is a woman whose husband has died.

phonetic

霜 shuāng

frost

霜 supplies the sound shuāng, matching its own reading. Its cold, lonely image of frost also faintly suits the solitary life of a widow.

孀 shuāng