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荒无人烟 (huāng wú rén yān) — desolate and uninhabited

Definition

Idiom: a place so wild and barren that not even smoke from cooking fires (人烟 = 'signs of human life') can be seen — i.e. totally desolate and uninhabited.

idiom
desolate and uninhabited

Examples

  • 荒无人烟，。
    Zhè piàn sēn lín huāng wú rén yān, hěn shǎo yǒu rén lái.
    This forest is desolate and uninhabited; very few people come here.
  • 荒无人烟，。
    Nà ge xiǎo dǎo huāng wú rén yān, zhǐ yǒu yě shēng dòng wù.
    That small island is desolate and uninhabited; there are only wild animals.
  • 荒无人烟，。
    Shā mò dì qū huāng wú rén yān, fēi cháng wēi xiǎn.
    Desert regions are desolate and uninhabited, making them very dangerous.

Origin

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
艹Written in full as艸cǎograss, plant
Sound part声符shēngfú
巟
巟huāng荒huāng
Same sound today

荒 is built from 艹 (grass, plant) and 巟, with 巟 giving the sound huāng.

Open 荒 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 無; 无 is its simplified writing.

For the simplified 无, the story is about 無. 無 drew a person dancing with ox tails held in both hands to pray for rain, then was borrowed for 'have no', so the picture does not explain that meaning.

Open 无 →

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 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 煙; 烟 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 烟 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (烟) it is 煙; in others it is 菸.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
火火huǒfire
Sound part声符shēngfú
垔
垔yīn煙yān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

This story is about the traditional form 煙, not the simplified 烟. It pairs 火, fire, with 垔, which gives the sound.

Open 烟 →
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Idioms & Set Phrases

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