Meaning of 人们
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- people
How to use 人们
人们 refers to people in general, often in statements about what people usually do, think, or feel. It is common in writing, news, and slightly formal speech. Example: 人们都喜欢春天。(Rénmen dōu xǐhuan chūntiān.) People all like spring.
人 (rén) looks like a person walking on two legs, and 们 (men) is the plural marker you already know from 我们 (wǒmen) and 他们 (tāmen). Put them together and one person becomes many people.
Common mistake: Learners often add a number before 人们, as in 三个人们, but 们 cannot follow a specific number, so say 三个人 (sān ge rén) instead. Also, 们 is said in the neutral tone, so do not stress it as mén.
人们 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
人 rén · person · 2 strokes
- 1
- 2
们 men · plural marker for pronouns · 5 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
Related words
Words that share a character with 人们.
Questions about 人们
What does 人们 mean?
人们 (rénmen) means "people" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 人们?
人们 is made of 2 characters: 人 (2 strokes), 们 (5 strokes). That is 7 strokes in total.
Is 人们 an HSK word?
Yes. 人们 is on the HSK 2 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 人们 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 人们 is written 人們.
What is the difference between 人们 and 别人?
人们 means people in general, including everyone. 别人 (biérén) means other people, specifically people who are not you or the speaker.
Can I use 人们 for a small group of people I know?
It sounds unnatural for a specific small group. For people you know, use 他们 (tāmen) or 大家 (dàjiā). 人们 works best for people in general or the public.