foreignness

IPA/ˈfɒrənnəs/
IPA/ˈfɔːrənnəs/

foreignness — noun

1. Being from a place other than the one where you live — the opposite of belonging

1.名詞B2
釋義

Being from a place other than the one where you live — the opposite of belonging to a country by birth or long residence. For instance, when a person's accent, appearance, or customs mark them as coming from somewhere else.

例句

Takeshi's Japanese accent signaled his foreignness as soon as he started working in São Paulo.

signaled by accent or appearance

Megan felt the foreignness of the Moroccan market in every unfamiliar smell and sound around her.

foreignness + of + place

同義詞
  • otherness

    broader term that includes any kind of difference, not just national

  • alienness

    stronger, more negative word suggesting something is not just foreign but unwelcome or threatening

  • exoticism

    focuses on the attractive, exciting side of being foreign

反義詞
  • nativeness

    the quality of belonging to a place by birth

文法句型

foreignness + of + noun phrase

用法筆記

Typically used with possessive adjectives (her foreignness, his foreignness) or after 'the foreignness of + noun' to identify the person or thing from another country. Common verbs include 'feel', 'notice', 'signal', and 'sense'.

常見錯誤

❌The foreignness culture was interesting.
✅The foreignness of the culture was interesting.
💡foreignness is a noun that requires 'of' before the thing being described as foreign.

2. How strange, unusual, or disorienting something feels when it lies entirely outs

2.名詞B2
釋義

How strange, unusual, or disorienting something feels when it lies entirely outside a person's normal experience. For example, the odd feeling you get in a place that should feel familiar but no longer does.

例句

After living abroad for five years, Olivia felt a strange foreignness in her childhood bedroom.

foreignness of a once-familiar place

The foreignness of the new computer system made it hard for Greta to finish her reports on time.

foreignness + of + unfamiliar system or object

同義詞
  • unfamiliarity

    more neutral; simply means not known, without the emotional tone of strangeness

  • strangeness

    broader term that can apply to anything odd, not only things outside one's normal experience

  • oddness

    milder and slightly informal; suggests something is unusual but not necessarily disorienting

反義詞
  • familiarity

    the state of being well known and easily recognised

文法句型

foreignness + of + noun phrase

用法筆記

Commonly paired with verbs of perception such as 'feel', 'notice', 'strike', or 'sense'. Often describes a place or object that a person expects to find familiar but experiences as strange.

常見錯誤

❌A foreignness feeling came over me.
✅A feeling of foreignness came over me.
💡foreignness is an abstract noun, not an adjective, so it cannot directly modify another noun.