Meaning of 人间
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- the human world
- the earth
How to use 人间
人间 is a literary or emotional word for life on earth, often used in contrast with heaven or in poetic phrases. A common expression is 人间天堂 (rénjiān tiāntáng), heaven on earth, used to praise beautiful places. Example: 苏州是人间天堂。(Sūzhōu shì rénjiān tiāntáng.) Suzhou is heaven on earth.
人 (rén) means person and 间 (jiān) means the space between things, so 人间 is the space where people live: the human world.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes use 人间 where they mean 人们 (rénmen, people) or 世界 (shìjiè, the world as a place with countries). 人间 is poetic and is not used for everyday statements like "people in the world like coffee."
人间 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
间 jiān · between · 7 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
Related words
Words that share a character with 人间.
| 时间 | shíjiān | (concept of) time; (duration of) time |
| 女人 | nǚrén | woman |
| 男人 | nánrén | a man; a male |
| 别人 | biérén | other people; others; other person |
| 房间 | fángjiān | room |
| 家人 | jiārén | family member; (old) servant |
| 病人 | bìngrén | sick person; patient |
| 中间 | zhōngjiān | the middle; the inside; in the middle; within; between; among |
| 工人 | gōngrén | worker |
| 老人 | lǎorén | old man or woman; the elderly |
| 洗手间 | xǐshǒujiān | toilet; lavatory |
| 有人 | yǒu rén | someone; people |
Questions about 人间
What does 人间 mean?
人间 (rénjiān) means "the human world; the earth" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 人间?
人间 is made of 2 characters: 人 (2 strokes), 间 (7 strokes). That is 9 strokes in total.
Is 人间 an HSK word?
Yes. 人间 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 人间 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 人间 is written 人間.
What is the difference between 人间 and 世界?
世界 (shìjiè) is the neutral word for the world, including countries and global matters. 人间 stresses human life on earth, often in contrast with heaven or the afterlife, and sounds more literary.
What does 人间蒸发 mean?
人间蒸发 (rénjiān zhēngfā) literally means to evaporate from the human world. It is a popular way to say someone has vanished without a trace or cut off all contact.