Definition
洋人 historically refers to foreigners, especially Westerners, and was commonly used in 19th–20th century China. Today it feels dated or carries a slight historical flavor; the neutral modern term is 外国人 (wàiguó rén) or the colloquial 老外 (lǎo wài). You may encounter 洋人 in older texts, period dramas, or when emphasizing the foreign origin of something.
n.
foreigner (used historically or with a slightly dated, sometimes exoticizing flavor)
Examples
- ，洋人。Qīng mò de shíhou, hěn duō yáng rén lái dào Zhōngguó zuò shēngyi.In the late Qing dynasty, many foreigners came to China to do business.
- ‘洋人’，‘’‘’。Xiànzài dàjiā bù shuō ‘yáng rén’ le, dōu shuō ‘wàiguó rén’ huò ‘lǎo wài’.Now people don't say 'yángrén' anymore; they say 'wàiguó rén' or 'lǎo wài'.
- 洋人。Zhè běn xiǎoshuō miáoxiě de yáng rén xíngxiàng dài yǒu míngxiǎn de shídài tèzhēng.The image of foreigners depicted in this novel carries clear features of the era.
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