Definition
下海 is a separable verb (离合词) with two major senses. The literal meaning is 'to put out to sea' — used for fishing, sailing, or going offshore. Figuratively, it means 'to plunge into the business world'; this sense exploded in the 1980s–90s when many state-sector workers and intellectuals quit their jobs to start private enterprises during China's market reforms. As a separable compound, you can insert aspect markers or measure words between 下 and 海, like 下了海 (jumped into business) or 下过一次海 (tried going into business once).
v.o.
(literal) to put out to seato go to sea(figurative, historical) to leave a state-sector job and start a private businessto venture into the market economy
Examples
- 下海。Yúmínmen yí dà zǎo jiù xià hǎi bǔ yú qù le.The fishermen went out to sea early in the morning to fish.
- ，下海。Jiǔshí niándài, hěnduō rén xuǎnzé xià hǎi jīngshāng.In the 1990s, many people chose to go into business.
- ，。Tā xià le hǎi yǐhòu, shōurù zēngjiā le hěnduō.After he went into business, his income increased a lot.
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