hongbao
Syllables: hong·bao/ˈhɒŋbaʊ/US/ˈhɔŋˌbaʊ/
hongbao noun: synonym of red envelope.
Noun
hongbao (plural hongbao or hongbaos)
- Synonym of red envelope.
- In the old days gifts of money were given to children by the older generation and were placed in red envelopes called hong bao. This practice has been discouraged by the Communists because it perpetuates "feudal-capitalist consciousness," the worship of wealth and money.1980, B. Michael Frolic, “Notes [Notes to Pages 50–65]”, in Mao’s People: Sixteen Portraits of Life in Revolutionary China, Cambridge, Mass.; London: Harvard University Press, →ISBN, note 8, page 269
- New Year's Eve is the traditional date for reunion dinners, but relatives and old friends enjoy getting together for feasting and entertainment throughout the entire holiday season. Gift giving is another time-honored custom still widely practiced among Singapore's Chinese. Hong bao, or "lucky...1988 January–February, Suzanne L. Murphy, “Island Hopping: Singapore’s Chingay Parade: Music, Muscle and Make-Believe”, in Nancy Zimmerman, editor, Islands: An International Magazine, Santa Barbara...
- Synonyms:
- red packet, angpao, ang pao, angpow, ang pow, lai see, red envelope
hongbao meaning in Tagalog, Malay, Indonesian and Thai
hongbao in Tagalog
- decorated paper envelope, traditionally red, containing a gift of money presented during special occasions; the gift of money presented in such an envelope
- ampaw
hongbao in Malay
- decorated paper envelope, traditionally red, containing a gift of money presented during special occasions; the gift of money presented in such an envelope
- angpau
hongbao in Indonesian
- decorated paper envelope, traditionally red, containing a gift of money presented during special occasions; the gift of money presented in such an envelope
- angpau
hongbao in Thai
- decorated paper envelope, traditionally red, containing a gift of money presented during special occasions; the gift of money presented in such an envelope
- อั่งเปา àng-bpao, แต๊ะเอีย dtɛ́-iia
More languagesFewer languages
- hongbao in Vietnamese
- lì xì, phong bao mừng tuổi
- hongbao in Myanmar
- အန်ပေါင်း anpaung:
Examples of hongbao in a sentence
- While most of the country has spent the weekend counting hongbaos and mahjong tiles, those guys have been out there salvaging hongbaos and half of Thomson Road.2003, Neil Humphreys, “The Thief”, in Scribbles from the Same Island, Singapore: Marshall Cavendish Editions, published 2006, →ISBN, page...
- The Chinese also exchange hongbao 紅包 hóngbāo or little red envelopes stuffed with money for good luck.2005, Tiger Tong et al., “China”, in Roy Kheng, Cheryl Frois, editors, China Business Guide, 3rd edition, Singapore: China Knowledge Press...
- When Chinese return home for the Spring Festival […] they will probably also prepare hongbao for the family.2017, “China and the Next Production Revolution”, in The Next Production Revolution: Implications for Governments and Business, Paris: OECD...
- The sum of money in the hongbao is not fixed and it is based on the relationship between the giver and recipient, i.e. the closer the relationship, the greater the sum of money given.2018, Lei Tan, “Neither Gift nor Payment: The Sociability of Instrumentality”, in Alena Ledeneva et al., editors, The Global Encyclopaedia...
Synonyms of hongbao
Forms of hongbao
| plural | hongbao |
|---|---|
| plural | hongbaos |
| alternative form | hong bao |
Origin of hongbao
Borrowed from Pinyin romanization of Mandarin 紅包 /红包 (hóngbāo), 红包 (hóngbāo, “red envelope, red packet, hongbao”): 紅 /红, 红 (hóng, “red”) + 包 (bāo, “bag, sack; parcel, package”). Doublet of angpao and ang pow.
Questions about hongbao
- What does hongbao mean?
- Hongbao means synonym of red envelope.
- What is hongbao in Tagalog?
- Hongbao in Tagalog is ampaw. See Hongbao meaning in Tagalog.
- How do you use hongbao in a sentence?
- While most of the country has spent the weekend counting hongbaos and mahjong tiles, those guys have been out there salvaging hongbaos and half of Thomson Road.
- What part of speech is hongbao?
- Hongbao is a noun.
- How do you pronounce hongbao?
- Hongbao is pronounced /ˈhɒŋbaʊ/ (UK).
- What is the plural of hongbao?
- The plural of hongbao is hongbao.
Words near hongbao in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: hongbao (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-hongbao.wav.
Cite this entry: “hongbao.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/hongbao. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.