流浪

• Pinyin: liú làng
• Hanzi breakdown: 流 = to flow, drift; 浪 = 氵+ 良 (wave, to roam)

Meaning

To wander; to roam without a fixed home. Living without a stable residence, often in poverty or by choice.

Can be used literally for homeless individuals or stray animals, and figuratively for a wandering or rootless state of mind. In literary contexts, carries a romantic or melancholic tone of freedom and displacement.

Examples

1. 那只流浪狗在寒风中瑟瑟发抖，引起了路人的怜悯和关注。 The stray dog shivered in the cold wind, drawing the sympathy and attention of passersby.
2. 战乱使数以万计的平民被迫背井离乡，开始了漫长的流浪生涯。 War forced tens of thousands of civilians to leave their homes and begin a long life of wandering.
3. 他在大学毕业后选择独自旅行，用两年时间在世界各地流浪，寻找人生的方向。 After graduating from college, he chose to travel alone, spending two years roaming around the world to find direction in life.

Usage Guide

Context: literary, social, travel

Tone: melancholic

Do Say

• 这部小说讲述了一个流浪艺术家穿越欧洲寻找自我的故事。(This novel tells the story of a wandering artist travelling across Europe in search of self.)
• 城市里的流浪者需要社会各界给予更多关注和人道主义援助。(Homeless people in cities need greater attention and humanitarian support from all sectors of society.)

Don't Say

• 把流浪用于普通旅行或出差 — 流浪 implies rootlessness, homelessness, or prolonged aimless wandering; use 旅行 or 出差 for purposeful travel (Don't use 流浪 for ordinary travel — it implies homelessness or aimless drifting, not purposeful trips)

Origin & History

流 (to flow, drift) + 浪 (wave, to roam freely) — to drift like a wave without a fixed place.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal