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局外人 (jú wài rén) — outsider; person not involved in a particular situation, group, or event

Definition

A literal 'outsider' — someone who is not part of a group, situation, or event and so has no say in it. The examples lean on its feel of detachment: standing outside a circle or project, not directly involved.

noun
outsiderperson not involved in a particular situation, group, or event
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • ，局外人，。
    Zài zhè ge xiàng mù zhōng, wǒ men jǐ gè shì jú wài rén, bù liǎo jiě jù tǐ qíng kuàng.
    In this project, we are outsiders and don't know the specific details.
  • 局外人，。
    Tā jué de zì jǐ xiàng gè jú wài rén, wú fǎ róng rù zhè ge quān zi.
    He feels like an outsider, unable to fit into this circle.
  • ，局外人，。
    Zhè jiàn shì yǔ nǐ wú guān, nǐ zhǐ shì gè jú wài rén, bú yào chā shǒu.
    This matter has nothing to do with you — you're just an outsider, so don't interfere.

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.

局外outside the affair
局júaffair外wàioutside
偏正Modifier + head
人rénperson

局 is the affair or group, 外 means outside, and 人 is a person: someone outside it.

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
尸尸shī
Sound part声符shēngfú
句
句jù局jú
Same sound today

The shape of 局 pairs 尸, a meaning part, with 句, a sound part.

Open 局 →

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.

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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