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外来人 (wài lái rén) — outsider; person from another place; non-native

Definition

A neutral, matter-of-fact term for a person from elsewhere — a newcomer or non-local, not a citizen of the place. The 外来- prefix (literally 'come from outside') marks the person as not from here.

noun
outsiderperson from another placenon-native
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • ，外来人。
    Zài zhè ge xiǎo chéng shì lǐ, wài lái rén hěn róng yì bèi rèn chū lái.
    In this small city, outsiders are easily recognized.
  • 外来人。
    Zhè wèi wài lái rén duì dāng dì de wén huà bú tài liǎo jiě.
    This outsider doesn't know much about the local culture.
  • 外来人。
    Xǔ duō wài lái rén zài zhè ge chéng shì zhǎo dào le gōng zuò.
    Many outsiders have found jobs in this city.

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.

外来coming from outside
外wàioutside来láicome
偏正Modifier + head
人rénperson

外 indicates outside, 来 indicates coming, and 人 is a person; together they describe someone who comes from outside.

Characters in this word

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
卜卜bǔ
Sound part声符shēngfú
月
月yuè外wài
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

外 pairs 卜 with 月, a crescent moon; in its older form, the 卜 part had a horizontal bar extending outward, giving the sense of outside.

Open 外 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 來; 来 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 來 shows a wheat plant: a central ear, upward leaves, and downward stem and roots. The simplified 来 is a later shorthand.

Open 来 →

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 →
Appears in
People (General)

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