观众

• Pinyin: guān zhòng
• Hanzi breakdown: 观 = 又 (hand) + 见 (see) — to view; 众 = three 人 (person) stacked — a crowd

Meaning

Audience; viewers; spectators. The people who watch a performance, show, or event.

Covers live audiences at theatres and stadiums as well as television and online viewers. Common phrases: 电视观众 (TV viewers), 现场观众 (live audience). The host of a show often addresses the audience as 观众朋友们 (dear viewers/audience friends).

Examples

1. 今天的演出吸引了很多观众。 Today's performance attracted a large audience.
2. 观众们热烈地鼓掌。 The audience applauded enthusiastically.
3. 这个节目的观众越来越多了。 This programme has more and more viewers.

Usage Guide

Context: entertainment, media, sports

Tone: descriptive

Do Say

• 观众朋友们，大家好！(Hello, dear viewers!)
• 这场比赛有上万名观众。(This match had tens of thousands of spectators.)

Don't Say

• 这本书的观众很多。(Don't use 观众 for book readers — it's for visual media. Say 这本书的读者很多.)

Origin & History

Compound of 观 (to view/watch) and 众 (crowd/many people). Literally 'the viewing crowd' — spectators or audience.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal