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(mǒu rén) - someone, a certain person, somebody in Mandarin

mǒurén

Traditional: 某人

Line drawing of 某人
Coloured illustration of 某人
#1995 of 5,000 Core 5000

Translation

someone, a certain person, somebody

Word origin

A compound of the indefinite determiner 某 (mǒu, certain, some) and 人 (rén, person), referring to an unnamed individual.

Origin
compound
Root
某 (mǒu, a certain) + 人 (rén, person)

Stroke order

Stroke order for 某

Stroke order for 人

Examples

I heard that a certain person secretly told the teacher.

This must have been done deliberately by someone.

In the letter she did not name a certain person.

A certain person owes me a sum of money.

dēng

Would somebody please turn off the light.

某人 (mǒu rén) means someone or a certain person, often used when the speaker knows but deliberately does not name the individual. It is more pointed and discreet than the plainer 有人.

Where this fits

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Mandarin · Free printables

某人: worksheet, infographic and listicle

Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "某人" (someone, a certain person, somebody): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.

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This word is part of lesson 40.