Meaning of 有人
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- someone
- people
- anyone
- there is someone there
- occupied (as in restroom)
How to use 有人
有人 often starts a sentence to mean "someone" or "some people" when you do not say who. It also means a place is taken, like a seat or a restroom. Example: 门口有人找你。(Ménkǒu yǒu rén zhǎo nǐ.) Someone at the door is looking for you.
有 (yǒu) means "to have" or "there is," and 人 (rén) means "person." Put them together and you get "there is a person," which is how Chinese says "someone."
Common mistake: Learners often put 有人 after the verb, as in 我看见有人, when it is more natural to say 我看见了一个人 or to start with 有人, as in 有人来了 (yǒu rén lái le). Also, 有 is third tone, so before 人 it should not be read as a flat or rising tone.
有人 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.
有 yǒu · to have · 6 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
人 rén · person · 2 strokes
- 1
- 2
Related words
Words that share a character with 有人.
| 没有 | méiyǒu | haven't; hasn't |
| 还有 | hái yǒu | there still remain(s); there is (or are) still; in addition |
| 女人 | nǚrén | woman |
| 男人 | nánrén | a man; a male |
| 别人 | biérén | other people; others; other person |
| 有些 | yǒuxiē | some; somewhat; rather; a bit |
| 家人 | jiārén | family member; (old) servant |
| 有时 | yǒushí | sometimes; now and then |
| 有时候 | yǒushíhou | sometimes |
| 病人 | bìngrén | sick person; patient |
| 有用 | yǒuyòng | useful |
| 工人 | gōngrén | worker |
Questions about 有人
What does 有人 mean?
有人 (yǒu rén) means "someone; people".
How do you write 有人?
有人 is made of 2 characters: 有 (6 strokes), 人 (2 strokes). That is 8 strokes in total.
Is 有人 an HSK word?
Yes. 有人 is on the HSK 2 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How do I say "nobody" or "no one" with 有人?
Use 没有人 (méiyǒu rén) or the shorter 没人 (méi rén). For example, 这里没人。(Zhèlǐ méi rén.) means "There is nobody here."
How do I ask "Is anyone there?" or "Is this seat taken?"
Say 有人吗？(Yǒu rén ma?) for "Is anyone there?" For a seat, say 这里有人吗？(Zhèlǐ yǒu rén ma?) and the answer might be 有人 (taken) or 没人 (free).