Meaning of 老家
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- native place
- place of origin
- home state or region
How to use 老家
老家 refers to your hometown or ancestral home, often a place you left to work or study elsewhere. It is very common when talking about holidays, especially Spring Festival trips. 春节我要回老家。(Chūnjié wǒ yào huí lǎojiā.) I'm going back to my hometown for Spring Festival.
老 (lǎo) means old and 家 (jiā) means home, so 老家 is your "old home," the place your family comes from. Picture an old house in your hometown where your grandparents still live.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes use 老家 for the place they live now, but it means where you or your family originally come from. For your current home, say 家 (jiā) or 家里 (jiā li).
老家 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.
老 lǎo · prefix used before the surname of a per… · 6 strokes
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家 jiā · home · 10 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 老家.
| 回家 | huí jiā | to return home |
| 国家 | guójiā | country; nation; state |
| 老师 | lǎoshī | teacher |
| 家里 | jiā li | home |
| 家人 | jiārén | family member; (old) servant |
| 在家 | zàijiā | to be at home; (at a workplace) to be in (as opposed to being away on official business 出差 |
| 老人 | lǎorén | old man or woman; the elderly |
| 大家 | dàjiā | everyone; influential family |
| 家庭 | jiātíng | family; household |
| 作家 | zuòjiā | author |
| 科学家 | kēxuéjiā | scientist |
| 老朋友 | lǎo péngyou | old friend; (slang) period |
Questions about 老家
What does 老家 mean?
老家 (lǎojiā) means "native place; place of origin" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 老家?
老家 is made of 2 characters: 老 (6 strokes), 家 (10 strokes). That is 16 strokes in total.
Is 老家 an HSK word?
Yes. 老家 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 老家 and 家乡?
Both can mean hometown. 老家 is more casual and everyday, and can also mean the old family house itself. 家乡 (jiāxiāng) sounds a bit more formal or emotional and is common in writing.
How do I ask someone where their hometown is?
You can say 你老家在哪儿? (Nǐ lǎojiā zài nǎr?) Where is your hometown? A typical answer is 我老家在四川。(Wǒ lǎojiā zài Sìchuān.) My hometown is in Sichuan.