人气

• Pinyin: rén qì
• Hanzi breakdown: 人 = 人 (person/people); 气 = 气 (air/energy/atmosphere — the spirit flowing from collective attention)

Meaning

Popularity; public appeal; the degree to which a person, place, product, or phenomenon attracts widespread interest and support.

Common in entertainment and social media: 人气明星 (popular celebrity), 人气榜 (popularity ranking), 人气商品. Also used for restaurants and tourist spots: 这家店人气很旺. Originally borrowed from Japanese 人気 (にんき), now fully naturalised in Chinese.

Examples

1. 这位年轻演员凭借一部口碑爆棚的网络剧迅速积累了大量粉丝，人气一路飙升至顶流行列。 This young actor shot to fame after a critically acclaimed web drama and quickly gained a huge fan base, with popularity soaring into top-star territory.
2. 地处城中心的这家老字号茶馆人气持续旺盛，每逢周末门口总排着长达数十人的等候队伍。 This long-established teahouse in the city center remains consistently popular; every weekend there’s a line of dozens of people waiting outside.
3. 大选进入最后冲刺阶段，两位候选人的民间人气高度接近，最终结果令各界人士充满期待。 As the election enters its final sprint, the two candidates’ grassroots popularity is neck and neck, and the outcome has everyone watching closely.

Usage Guide

Context: entertainment, social media, commerce, tourism

Tone: positive

Do Say

• 为提升城市文化软实力，市政府积极打造网红打卡地，吸引流量，带动周边商圈的整体人气和消费活力。(To enhance the city's cultural soft power, the municipal government has actively developed social-media hotspots to attract traffic and boost the overall popularity and consumer vitality of surrounding commercial districts.)
• 这款手机游戏上线仅三天便登顶应用商店下载排行榜，人气之高令业界颇为惊叹。(This mobile game topped the app store download chart within just three days of its launch, with its soaring popularity leaving the industry rather astonished.)

Don't Say

• 他的人气很好 — use 他的人气很高 or 他很有人气; 人气 collocates with 高/旺/足, not 好

Origin & History

人 (people) + 气 (spirit/atmosphere/energy) — the energy or atmosphere generated by people's collective enthusiasm

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal