黑人 (hēi rén) — Black person, Black people

Definition

Literal meaning 'Black person' (黑 'black' + 人 'person'). The neutral, standard term in modern Chinese; older or translated English senses like 'negro' are obsolete and offensive.

noun
Black personBlack people
Measure word ·

Examples

  • 黑人
    Zài měi guó lì shǐ shàng, hēi rén céng jīng zāo shòu guò cháng qī de zhǒng zú qí shì.
    In American history, Black people once suffered long-term racial discrimination.
  • 黑人
    Tā shì yí wèi zhù míng de hēi rén zuò jiā, zuò pǐn yǐng xiǎng le hěn duō dú zhě.
    He is a famous Black writer whose works have influenced many readers.
  • 黑人
    Zhè bù diàn yǐng jiǎng shù le hēi rén shè qū de wén huà hé chuán tǒng.
    This film tells about the culture and traditions of the Black community.

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.

hēiblack
rénperson

The idea of 黑 as black joins with 人 to mean a Black person.

Characters in this word

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

The shape of 黑 seems to come from drawing a head marked with dots, usually read as facial tattoos.

Open 黑 →

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 →

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