Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 外出 | wàichū |
| 出門 / 出门 | chūmén |
The verb describes leaving one's home or abode to go to public places. You might use 外出 specifically when explaining that you are leaving the house to attend to business or errands, such as in the phrase 外出办事.
What does it mean word for word?
The term 出门 (chūmén) literally means 'to exit the door'.
Which one should you use?
外出 is more formal and is often used in written contexts or to describe the general act of being away from home. In contrast, 出门 is more common in daily speech.
How does it change in a sentence?
If you want to say that someone has already gone out, you can add 了 (le) after the verb to form 出门了, which indicates a change of state.
How do you pronounce it?
wàichū
When do people say it?
In Chinese culture, it is customary to invite others by suggesting a specific activity, such as 一起去吃晚饭吧 (Let's go out for dinner).
Did you know?
- There is a cultural concept of 'auspicious timing' for 出门, where people consult a lunar calendar to find the best hour to leave the house to ensure good luck for the day.
- When you are 'going out' to socialize or party, you might hear the term 出去玩 (chūqù wán). While it translates to 'go out to play', in an adult context, it is the standard, natural way to say you are 'going out' for fun or leisure.
- The character in 出门 (chūmén), the 'door' radical 门, is often used as a metaphor in Chinese literature to represent the boundary between the private family sphere and the public social world. 'Going out' is thus a transition between these two distinct social realms.
Examples in context
- 孩子們不喜歡摸黑外出。Children don't like to go out in the dark.This sentence shows how to describe going out in the dark using 外出.Tatoeba #6131479 by verdastelo9604, translation #245936 by CK
- 我曾经每周末都和朋友外出。I used to go out with friends every weekend.This sentence uses 外出 to describe a past habit of going out with friends.Tatoeba #5631893 by verdastelo9604, translation #5189114 by CK
- 汤姆因为有很多作业不能外出。Tom can't go out because he has a lot of homework.This sentence demonstrates using 外出 to explain why someone cannot go out.Tatoeba #5965713 by verdastelo9604, translation #1026773 by CK
- 请等一下，我要出去一下买东西。Please wait a moment, I need to go out and buy something.
- 我们一起出去玩吧！Let's go out and have fun together!
- 天气这么好，我们去外面晒太阳吧！The weather is so nice, let's go outside and sunbathe!
- 4 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends are talking about their plans for the weekend.
- 志强 Zhiqiang你周末想外出逛逛吗？Nǐ zhōumò xiǎng wàichū guàngguàng ma?Do you want to go out and look around this weekend?
- 雨婷 Yuting我想，但我还没决定去哪。Wǒ xiǎng, dàn wǒ hái méi juédìng qù nǎ.I do, but I haven't decided where to go yet.
- 志强 Zhiqiang我们可以一起去公园。Wǒmen kěyǐ yīqǐ qù gōngyuán.We can go to the park together.
- 雨婷 Yuting好主意，我们周六外出吧。Hǎo zhǔyì, wǒmen zhōuliù wàichū ba.Good idea, let's go out on Saturday.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “go out” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
