Chinese word

失主

Pronunciation

Pinyinshī zhǔ

Meaning

  • nounowner of a lost item

Example

地铁上有人找到钱包，正在找失主。dì tiě shàng yǒu rén zhǎo dào qián bāo zhèng zài zhǎo shī zhǔ

Someone found a wallet on the subway and is looking for its owner.

Illustration for 失主 (owner of a lost item)

More examples

图书馆有人捡到钥匙，正在联系失主。tú shū guǎn yǒu rén jiǎn dào yào shi zhèng zài lián xì shī zhǔ

Someone at the library found a key and is contacting its owner.

Core concept

A missing object's rightful claimant, viewed from the object's side.

Common phrases

  • 找到失主zhǎo dào shī zhǔ

    find the owner of a lost item

  • 联系失主lián xì shī zhǔ

    contact the owner of a lost item

  • 寻找失主xún zhǎo shī zhǔ

    look for the owner of a lost item

Similar words

物主wù zhǔ: The person who owns a particular item.
捡到者jiǎn dào zhě: The person who finds and picks up an item that has been left behind.
失物招领处shī wù zhāo lǐng chù: A place or service desk that keeps lost items until their owners collect them.

Definition in Chinese

对某件被丢失物享有所有权并可能前来认领的人，亦即遗失物的持有人。duì mǒu jiàn bèi diū shī wù xiáng yǒu suó yǒu quán bìng kě néng qián lái rèn lǐng de rén yì jí yí shī wù de chí yǒu rén

Word origin

失 (shī, "to lose") marks the object's disappearance, while 主 (zhǔ, "owner") supplies the person at the center of ownership; together they form a noun tied specifically to a lost object.

Usage tips

  • The word is useful when a found item is being returned: the focus is the recovery situation, not the person's name, job, or relationship to the finder.

Opposites

  • 拾得者shí dé zhěfinder of a lost itemnoun

Word lists with this word