探望

• Pinyin: tàn wàng
• Hanzi breakdown: 探 = 扌+ 罙; 望 = 亡 + 月 + 王 (to gaze into the distance)

Meaning

To visit; to call on; to go see. Visiting someone, especially the sick, elderly, or distant.

A polite, slightly formal term for visiting someone, typically those who are ill, elderly, or whom one hasn't seen in a while. More purposeful than a casual drop-by. Often involves bringing gifts.

Examples

1. 听说老师住院了，我们打算周末去探望她。 I heard the teacher is in the hospital, so we're planning to visit her this weekend.
2. 每逢节日，他都会去养老院探望那些孤寡老人。 Every holiday, he goes to the nursing home to visit the elderly who have no family.
3. 好朋友从国外回来，我专程去机场探望。 A good friend came back from abroad, so I made a special trip to the airport to see them.

Usage Guide

Context: hospital visits, elderly care, formal visits

Tone: caring

Do Say

• 我去医院探望朋友。(I'm going to visit my friend in the hospital.)
• 谢谢你来探望我。(Thank you for coming to see me.)

Don't Say

• 把日常闲逛说成'探望' (探望 implies purposeful visiting of specific people — for casual hanging out, use 串门)

Origin & History

探 means to visit or probe, 望 means to look toward or hope. Together: to visit and see.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal