全然 (quán rán) — completely; entirely (formal, often with negati… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Formal adverb for 'completely, entirely', most often used with negation (全然不知). Stronger and more written than 完全.

adverb

completelyentirely (formal, often with negation)

Examples

全然，。
Tā quán rán bú gù jiā rén de fǎn duì, jiān chí chū guó liú xué.
He completely ignored his family's objections and insisted on studying abroad.
，全然。
Duì yú zhè jiàn shì, wǒ quán rán bù zhī qíng.
I had no knowledge of this matter at all.
全然，。
Tā de tài dù quán rán biàn le, ràng wǒ hěn yì wài.
His attitude changed completely, which really surprised me.

Origin

Derived word

构词法gòucífǎ

后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

全quáncomplete

全 means 'complete', and 然 adds the sense '...ly', so 全然 means 'completely'.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

入入rù
玉玉yùjade

The shape puts 入 together with 玉 to show a whole piece of jade, so it means complete or whole.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

火火huǒfire

Sound part声符shēngfú

肰

肰rán然rán

Same sound today

然 is made from 肰, which gives the sound, and 火, which shows fire, matching the old sense 'to burn'.

Appears in

Comparison & Degree

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