他乡 (tā xiāng) — a place away from one's home; an alien land

Definition

Literary word for 'a place away from home' — used in writing and set phrases like 他乡遇故知, not in everyday speech.

noun
a place away from one's homean alien land

Examples

  • 他乡，。
    Dú zì zài tā xiāng dǎ pīn, nán miǎn huì xiǎng jiā.
    Struggling alone in a strange land, it's inevitable to feel homesick.
  • 他乡，。
    tā xiāng Yù gù zhī, shì rén shēng yí dà xìng shì.
    Meeting an old friend in a foreign land is one of life's great joys.
  • 他乡，。
    Tā yǐ zài tā xiāng shēng huó le èr shí nián, què shǐ zhōng méi yǒu guī shǔ gǎn.
    He has lived in a foreign land for twenty years, yet he has never felt a sense of belonging.

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.

他tāother
乡xiānghometown

他乡 is a 乡 that is 他, another place rather than a home.

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
亻Written in full as人rénman
Sound part声符shēngfú
也
也yě他tā
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

他 combines 亻 (a person) with 也, which was chosen for its sound.

Open 他 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 鄉; 乡 is its simplified writing.

  • 𠨍𠨍𠨍two people facing each other
  • 皀皀jía round-mouthed food vessel

The traditional form 鄉 combines two people facing each other with a round-mouthed food vessel, depicting a feast. The village meaning is connected to this feasting event.

Open 乡 →

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