noun / adjective HSK 4
Traditional 室內
indoor · interior · inside a room
Meaning
室内 refers to the interior space of a building or room, as opposed to outdoor or exterior areas. It's commonly used as both a noun meaning 'the indoors' and as an attributive adjective before other nouns to specify that something is indoor or interior-related.
Usage
Native speakers use 室内 to distinguish indoor activities, spaces, or objects from outdoor ones (室外). It frequently appears in compounds like 室内设计 (interior design), 室内温度 (indoor temperature), and 室内运动 (indoor sports). The word is neutral in register and appropriate for both formal and casual contexts.
Examples
- 01今天天气不好，我们在室内活动吧。, .The weather is bad today, let's do indoor activities.
- 02这家餐厅的室内装修很有特色。.This restaurant's interior decoration is very distinctive.
Characters
Common collocations
- 室内设计interior design
- 室内温度indoor temperature
- 室内运动indoor sports
- 室内装修interior decoration
Antonyms
Origin
The word combines 室 (room) with 内 (inside) to literally mean 'inside the room.' This straightforward compound has been used in Chinese for centuries to denote interior spaces.