人间 (rén jiān) — the human world; the mortal world

Definition

人间 (rénjiān) is the 'human world' as a literary counterpart to heavenly or immortal realms — narrower than 世间 ('the world' in general, including all of existence), and distinct from 人类 ('humanity' as a species).

noun
the human worldthe mortal world

Examples

  • 人间
    Chuán shuō zhōng, xiān rén huì xià dào rén jiān bāng zhù hǎo rén.
    In legend, immortals descend to the human world to help good people.
  • 人间
    Zhè bù xiǎo shuō miáo xiě le rén jiān de bēi huān lí hé.
    This novel depicts the joys and sorrows of the human world.
  • 人间
    Tā xiāng xìn rén jiān zì yǒu zhēn qíng zài.
    He believes that true feeling exists in the human world.

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.

rénhuman
jiānspace among

人 human plus 间 space among gives the human world or mortal realm.

Characters in this word

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 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 间 →

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