TongTong
Sign in

各界 (gè jiè) — all walks of life; various sectors/circles (of society)

Definition

各 (each) + 界 (sphere/circle) — means 'people from every sector of society' (各界人士, 各界代表). Used in news and formal writing to refer collectively to business, academic, government, and other groups.

noun
all walks of lifevarious sectors/circles (of society)

Examples

  • 各界。
    Lái zì gè jiè de dài biǎo chū xí le huì yì.
    Representatives from all walks of life attended the meeting.
  • 各界，。
    gè jiè Rén shì fēn fēn juān kuǎn, bāng zhù zāi qū rén mín.
    People from all circles donated money to help the disaster area.
  • 各界。
    Zhè ge zhèng cè shòu dào le gè jiè de guǎng fàn zhī chí.
    This policy received widespread support from all walks of life.

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.

各gèeach/all
界jièsector/circle

各 gives each or all, and 界 gives sectors of society, so together it means all walks of life.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

各 shows a sole of a foot (夂) coming into an entrance (口), for the sense of coming or entering.

Open 各 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
田田tiánfield
Sound part声符shēngfú
介
介jiè界jiè
Same sound today

界 is built from 田 (field) and 介. 田 carries the meaning, while 介 gives the sound.

Open 界 →
Appears in
Groups & OrganizationsSociety & Public Life

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.