Chinese word

南方

Pronunciation

Pinyinnán fāng

Meaning

  • nounsouth

Example

我想去南方旅行。wǒ xiǎng qù nán fāng lǚ xíng

I want to travel to the south.

Illustration for 南方 (south)

More examples

夏天，南方常常下雨。xià tiān nán fāng cháng cháng xià yǔ

In summer, it often rains in the south.

Core concept

It names the southern side of a place and the direction leading toward that side.

Common phrases

  • 从南方来cóng nán fāng lái

    come from the south

  • 南方文化nán fāng wén huà

    southern culture

Similar words

南nán: The south as a compass direction, shown at the bottom of standard maps.
南边nán biān: The place or position on the south side of a reference point.
南部nán bù: The southern section of a country or larger region.
南面nán miàn: The southern side or face of an object or place.

Definition in Chinese

既可作名词指某地的南边或南部，也可作方位词表示朝南或去南边的动作。jì kě zuò míng cí zhǐ mǒu dì de nán biān huò nán bù yě kě zuò fāng wèi cí biǎo shì cháo nán huò qù nán biān de dòng zuò

Word origin

南方 (nánfāng, "south") combines 南 (nán, "south") with 方 (fāng, "direction or area"), so it can point to either a southern place or the way south.

Usage tips

  • English often uses south as a noun, adjective, or adverb, while Chinese can use 南方 (nánfāng, "south") as a place-like noun, so sentence position helps show its role.

Other meanings

  • southern regionnoun

Opposites

Related words

  • 南方话nán fāng huàsouthern dialectnoun
  • 南方菜nán fāng càisouthern cuisinenoun

Word lists with this word