外文 (wài wén) — foreign language; foreign-language writing

Definition

Literary/written term for a foreign language, often referring to the written form or the field generally. 比 外语 more bookish; emphasizes writing over speech.

noun
foreign languageforeign-language writing

Examples

  • ，外文。
    Tā jīng tōng sān mén wài yǔ, bāo kuò yīng wén hé rì wén děng wài wén.
    He is proficient in three foreign languages, including English, Japanese, and other foreign languages.
  • 外文，？
    Zhè fèn zī liào quán shì yòng wài wén xiě de, nǐ néng fān yì ma?
    This document is all written in a foreign language; can you translate it?
  • 外文。
    Xué xí wài wén zuì zhòng yào de jiù shì jiān chí.
    The most important thing in learning a foreign language is persistence.

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wàioutside/foreign
文wénwriting/language

外 marks foreign, and 文 covers writing or language, giving the sense of a foreign language.

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 →

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

The current form 文 shows a man with head, arms, legs, and chest; the tattoo marks on the chest are no longer drawn.

Open 文 →

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