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反而 (fǎn ér) — (adverb) on the contrary, instead (indicating a result opposite to expectation)

Definition

反而 (fǎn'ér) is a contrastive adverb meaning 'instead / on the contrary', used when a result goes against what was expected. Unlike the conjunction 相反, it always appears as a single-word adverb mid-sentence, not as a topic-shifting connector.

adverb
on the contraryinstead (indicating a result opposite to expectation)
Easily confused

Examples

  • ，反而。
    Tā chī le yào, bìng fǎn ér gèng yán zhòng le.
    He took medicine, but instead his illness got worse.
  • ，反而。
    Wǒ běn lái xiǎng bāng tā, fǎn ér gěi tā tiān le má fan.
    I originally wanted to help him, but instead I caused him trouble.
  • ，反而。
    Nǐ shuō dé màn yì diǎn, tā fǎn ér tīng bù dǒng le.
    You spoke more slowly, but he couldn't understand instead.

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.

反fǎncontrary
而ér

反 gives the idea of 'contrary', and 而 completes the fixed form 反而, 'on the contrary'.

Characters in this word

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
又又yòuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
厂
厂chǎng反fǎn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

反 uses 又 (hand) for meaning and 厂 for sound. Its original shape showed a hand turning its palm over, giving the sense of return or reverse.

Open 反 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 而 is a picture of a beard.

Open 而 →

Grammar

Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5HSK 2.0 Level 5Cause, Effect & Logic5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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