滞留

• Pinyin: zhì liú
• Hanzi breakdown: 滞 = 氵+ 带 (water stuck); 留 = 卯 + 田 (remain in place)

Meaning

To be stranded; to be detained; to remain stuck somewhere. Unable to leave or proceed as planned.

Used for travellers (旅客滞留 — passengers stranded), goods (货物滞留 — goods held up), and people in situations (滞留海外 — stranded abroad). Implies unplanned, often problematic delay in moving forward.

Examples

1. 暴风雪导致上千名旅客滞留机场，航空公司紧急安排食宿。 A blizzard stranded thousands of travelers at the airport, and the airline arranged food and lodging on an emergency basis.
2. 由于签证问题，他被迫滞留境外长达三个月。 Because of visa issues, he was forced to remain abroad for as long as three months.
3. 集装箱在港口滞留，物流成本大幅上升。 Containers were held up at the port, and logistics costs rose sharply.

Usage Guide

Context: travel, logistics, emergencies

Tone: negative

Do Say

• 航班取消后，乘客们被迫在候机厅滞留一夜。(After the flight was cancelled, passengers were forced to remain stranded in the terminal overnight.)
• 疫情期间大量海外公民滞留当地，使馆积极协调撤侨。(During the pandemic, many overseas citizens were stranded locally, and the embassy actively coordinated evacuations.)

Don't Say

• 我在咖啡馆滞留了一下午 — for voluntary staying, use 待了 or 呆了; 滞留 implies being stuck involuntarily

Origin & History

滞 (stagnate/stuck) + 留 (remain/stay)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal