外间 (wài jiān) — (noun) outer room (as opposed to inner room); (figurative) outside circles; external world; outsiders
Definition
外间 has two distinct senses: a physical 'outer room' (paired with 里间), and, used as 外间的人, 'people outside' / 'the outside world' (paired with 内部). The second sense is the one you'll meet in modern prose.
noun
outer room (as opposed to inner room)(figurative) outside circlesexternal worldoutsiders
Measure word · 间
Examples
- 外间，。Zhè jiā diàn de wài jiān mài yī fu, lǐ jiān shì cāng kù.The outer room of this shop sells clothes, and the inner room is the warehouse.
- 外间。Gōng sī nèi bù de shì bú yào ràng wài jiān de rén zhī dào.Don't let the people outside the company know about internal matters.
- 外间。Tā duì wài wài jiān de kàn fǎ bú tài zài yì.He doesn't really care about the views of the outside world.
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