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野外 (yě wài) — wilderness, outdoors, open country

Definition

野外 means undeveloped land beyond towns — wilderness, the open wild. Unlike 郊外 (suburbs at a city's edge) or 户外 (any outdoor activities), it stresses remote, uncultivated nature.

noun
wildernessoutdoorsopen country

Examples

  • 。
    Tā zài yě wài dā le yí gè zhàng peng.
    He set up a tent in the wilderness.
  • 野外。
    yě wài De kōng qì fēi cháng xīn xiān.
    The air in the countryside is very fresh.
  • 。
    Hái zi men xǐ huan zài yě wài wán shuǎ.
    The children enjoy playing in the great outdoors.

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.

野yěwilderness
外wàioutside

野 (wilderness) and 外 (outside) combine to mean the open country beyond settled places.

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
田田tiánfield
土土tǔearth
Sound part声符shēngfú
予
予yǔ野yě
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

野 combines 田 (field) above 土 (earth) to show open country, with 予 giving the sound.

Open 野 →

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 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6Outdoor Recreation

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