n.
foreign country; abroad
外国
Common Usage & Traps
- 外国人 — foreigner; foreign person
- 去外国 — go abroad; go to a foreign country
- 外国朋友 — foreign friend
- 外国电影 — foreign film
- 外国黑白老电影 — foreign black-and-white old movie
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外国国家外国外国 already means foreign country. Adding 国家 is redundant and unnatural.
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我是外国我是外国人外国 is a country, not a person. If you mean you are a foreigner, add 人.
Why do Chinese people say 我是外国人, not 我是外国?
外国 means foreign country. A foreign person is 外国人.
外国 is a place, not a person. If you talk about yourself or someone else, add 人. Without 人, 我是外国 sounds like 'I am a foreign country'.
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Talking about a person | 他是外国人 | 他是外国 |
| Talking about a country | 他去外国了 | 他去外国人了 |
Why do Chinese people say 外国电影 instead of 外国的电影 for foreign films?
Drop 的 when 外国 labels a simple category.
外国 + noun without 的 often means a broad category. 外国的 + noun with 的 sounds more specific or contrastive. For generic 'foreign films', 外国电影 is the everyday choice. “今天我们就要看一个外国黑白老电影。” (Today we're going to see a foreign black-and-white old movie.) ── [《你喜欢看老电影吗？》](/read/do-you-like-old-movies#s15)
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Simple category | 外国电影 | 外国的电影 (for generic 'foreign films') |
| Specific contrast | 外国的电影 | 外国电影 (when pointing to specific ones) |
Featured in Story Deep Dive
Follow how this word unfolds across the narrative arc of this graded story.
In this dialogue, two people chat while waiting outside a cinema. You'll hear common phrases for talking about hobbies, sports, and movie preferences.
- Scene #1
今天我们就要看一个 外国 黑白老电影。
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