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新人 (xīn rén) — newcomer, new member; fresh talent, rising star; newlywed (bride or couple)

Definition

新人 covers several 'new person' meanings — a newcomer to a workplace or group, a rising talent, or a newlywed. 新手 is a closer match when you mean 'a beginner at a skill'; 新生 is a school 'freshman'.

noun
newcomernew memberfresh talentrising starnewlywed (bride or couple)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 新人。
    Tā shì wǒ men gōng sī de xīn rén.
    He is a newcomer in our company.
  • 新人。
    Zhè cì bǐ sài chū xiàn le hěn duō xīn rén.
    Many fresh talents appeared in this competition.
  • 新人。
    Zhè duì xīn rén xià ge yuè jié hūn.
    This newlywed couple will get married next month.

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.

新xīnnew
人rénperson

The ideas of 新 (new) and 人 (person) combine to mean a person who is new to a group or a newly married person.

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.

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
斤斤jīn
Sound part声符shēngfú
辛
辛xīn新xīn
Same sound today

The shape originally paired 斤, for chopping wood, with 辛 for sound. It was borrowed for its sound to write 新, so the chopping-wood parts are unrelated to 'new'.

Open 新 →

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
HSK 3.0 Level 5People (General)5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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