恍如隔世
huǎng rú gé shì
as if a whole lifetime had passed; to feel like another age
Character by character
恍huǎng
seemingly
seemingly
如rú
like
like
隔gé
separated by
separated by
世shì
a lifetime
a lifetime
Example
离开家乡三十年再回来，街道全变了样，他觉得恍如隔世。
Coming home after thirty years away, he found the streets completely changed, and it felt like another lifetime.
Tone: neutral.
Usage and origin
恍如 is a literary 好像 (as if). Said when a long absence, a great change or a shock makes the recent past seem a world away; often 有恍如隔世之感. Written, but common in speech too.
Learn this in Lesson 253 · HSK 9+: 杨绛《我们仨》 (Yang Jiang’s We Three)
A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. The first lessons of every level are free.
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