任意 (rèn yì) — (adjective) arbitrary, unrestricted; any (used before a noun or 一个); (adverb) at will, arbitrarily, as one pleases
Definition
任意 emphasizes acting on no rules at all — 'arbitrary, at will' — stronger and more negative than 随便 (casual/feel-free) and 随意 (as one wishes, neutral). 乱 and 胡乱 stress random/disorderly action; 擅自 adds the sense of doing so without permission.
adjective
arbitraryunrestrictedany (used before a noun or 一个)
adverb
at willarbitrarilyas one pleases
Examples
- 任意。Nǐ bù néng rèn yì jìn rù zhè ge fáng jiān.You cannot enter this room at will.
- 任意。rèn yì Yí gè xué shēng dōu kě yǐ cān jiā bǐ sài.Any student can participate in the competition.
- 任意。Tā rèn yì xuǎn le sān gè hào mǎ.He arbitrarily/randomly chose three numbers.
Origin
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