北漂

běipiāo

noun

Meanings

1 migrant worker living in Beijing without a hukou
2 to drift to Beijing in pursuit of career opportunities

Characters

north (short for Beijing)

Examples

HSK 4

我北漂了五年，最后还是回老家了。

Wǒ běipiāo le wǔnián, zuìhòu háishì huílǎojiā le.

I drifted in Beijing for five years, and in the end I still went back home.

HSK 4

他是一个典型的北漂，住在五环外的合租房。

Tā shì yíge diǎnxíng de běipiāo, zhù zài wǔ huán wài de hézū fáng.

He's a typical Beijing drifter, living in a shared apartment outside the fifth ring road.

HSK 5

北漂的日子很辛苦，但他不想放弃。

Běipiāo de rìzi hěn xīnkǔ, dàn tā bù xiǎng fàngqì.

Life as a Beijing drifter is tough, but he doesn't want to give up.

Tips

culture

The 漂 (drift) image captures the rootlessness of life without a Beijing hukou - no local schools for your kids, higher barriers to buy a house or a car. Parallel terms: 沪漂 (Shanghai), 深漂 (Shenzhen).

register

Used both as a noun (the person) and a verb (the act of doing it). Casual, often self-deprecating when people describe their own situation.

Stroke Order

北 běi

漂 piāo