Comparing "renjia" and "bieren"
| This article is a stub. Editors can help the Chinese Grammar Wiki by expanding it. |
When describing others, we can use the word 人家 or 别人. But 人家 also has other grammatical uses, which we will explore in this article.
Contents
Both mean "others"
人家 and 别人 both refer to others besides the speaker and the listener, however, 人家 is more colloquial.
Structure
Verb + 人家/别人
Examples
- 我 不 在乎 人家 怎么 说。
- 我 不 在乎 别人 怎么 说。
人家 can mean "I"
人家 can be used to refer to yourself, and it is often used this way by women, giving it a sort of girly, shy, tender feeling.
Structure
人家 + VP
Examples
- 因为 人家 喜欢 你 嘛。
- 讨厌，老是 拿 人家 开玩笑。
人家 can mean a certain "him" or "her"
人家 can also refer to someone previously referred to (in the context of the conversation or body of text)or it can refer to a certain someone that both the speaker and listener know.
Structure
Subject + Verb + 人家
Examples
- 你 快 去 给 人家 道歉。
- 你 看 人家 升职 升 得 多 快，你呢？
人家 can mean "residents"
人家 can also mean residents or inhabitant.
Structure
人家
Examples
- 这里 很 少 有 人家。
- 前面 有 一 户 人家，我们 去 看看 吧。
See also
Sources and further reading
Books
- 对外汉语教学语法释疑201例 (人家vs别人 p.81) →buy
- 现代汉语八百词（增订本） (人家p.463) →buy
Dictionaries
- 现代汉语词典（第5版） (人家1145) →buy
