蜗居

蝸居
wōjū
noun #57,009

Meanings

  1. 1 humble abode; tiny home
  2. 2 to live in a cramped place

Examples

HSK 3
Huānyíng láidào wǒ de wōjū!
Welcome to my humble abode!
HSK 4
Bìyè hòu, wǒ zài Běijīng wōjū le wǔ nián.
After graduating I lived in a cramped little place in Beijing for five years.

Tips

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As a noun, 蜗居 is a modest way to speak of one's own home; said of someone else's, it just means the place is tiny. 蜗 is the snail: a home no bigger than a snail's shell.

In Pop Culture

蜗居 Wōjū
Dwelling Narrowness
2009 TV drama, adapted from a novel, about two sisters squeezed by big-city house prices; it made 蜗居 a byword for cramped urban living.

Stroke Order

蜗 wō
居 jū