世人 (shì rén) — the world's people; everyone; people in general

Definition

世人 is a literary word for 'people of the world' in a broad, almost philosophical sense (as in 世人常说…). It's more formal and abstract than 大家 ('everyone' in plain speech) and pairs naturally with 世间 ('this earthly realm').

noun
the world's peopleeveryonepeople in general
Measure word ·

Examples

  • 世人
    shì rén Cháng shuō, shí jiān shì zuì hǎo de yī shēng.
    People often say that time is the best healer.
  • Zài shì rén yǎn lǐ, qián bìng bú shì zuì zhòng yào de.
    In the eyes of the world, money is not the most important thing.
  • 世人
    shì rén Duì chéng gōng de dìng yì gè bù xiāng tóng.
    People have different definitions of success.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

shìworld
rénpeople

世 gives the world, and 人 the people, so it means everyone in the world.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 世 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 人 shows a side view of a standing person, with an arm and a leg.

Open 人 →

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