---
title: "Danshen Meaning: 单身 (dānshēn) Means “single”"
description: "单身 (traditional 單身, dānshēn) means “single; unmarried”. Hear its tones, see what 单 and 身 each mean and a real sentence that uses it."
canonical: "https://mandarinthewild.com/meaning/danshen"
published: "2026-10-21"
updated: "2026-11-06"
author: "Mandarin The Wild"
---

[What does it mean in Chinese?](https://mandarinthewild.com/meaning)

# What does 单身 mean?

猫头鹰māotóuyīngowl

单身 dānshēn

## single; unmarried

## Its characters

1. 单 dān single
2. 身 shēn body

## In a sentence

我哥哥三十岁了，还是单身。 My older brother is thirty and still single.

光棍”，字面意思是光秃秃的棍子，口语里指没结婚的男人，现在也常常用来指**单身**的人。

From [双十一是怎么来的？ · Where did Singles Day come from?](https://mandarinthewild.com/library/read/singles-day-11-11-origin#library-word-114-116)

[More about 单身](https://mandarinthewild.com/words/%E5%8D%95%E8%BA%AB)

## More words with 单 or 身

- [本身 běnshēn](https://mandarinthewild.com/meaning/benshen)
- [菜单 càidān](https://mandarinthewild.com/meaning/caidan)
- [床单 chuángdān](https://mandarinthewild.com/meaning/chuangdan)
- [出身 chūshēn](https://mandarinthewild.com/meaning/chushen)
- [单纯 dānchún](https://mandarinthewild.com/meaning/danchun)
- [单独 dāndú](https://mandarinthewild.com/meaning/dandu)
- [单价 dānjià](https://mandarinthewild.com/meaning/danjia)
- [单位 dānwèi](https://mandarinthewild.com/meaning/danwei)
- [单一 dānyī](https://mandarinthewild.com/meaning/danyi)
- [单元 dānyuán](https://mandarinthewild.com/meaning/danyuan)

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[How it compares with Zhongwen](https://mandarinthewild.com/compare/zhongwen)