流离失所
liú lí shī suǒ
driven from home and forced to wander; displaced
Character by character
流liú
drift
drift
离lí
scatter
scatter
失shī
lose
lose
所suǒ
place
place
Example
那场战争使几百万人流离失所，很多家庭从此再也没有团聚。
The war drove millions from their homes, and many families were never reunited.
Tone: neutral.
Usage and origin
Of people uprooted by war, famine or disaster, usually after 使、让、导致: 洪水使上万人流离失所. Compare 无家可归 (lesson 5-19), which stresses having no home; 流离失所 stresses being scattered and on the move. Not used of a single person who has simply moved house.
Learn this in Lesson 171 · HSK 7–9: 1998年的洪水 (The floods of 1998)
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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