TongTong
Sign in

反常 (fǎn cháng) — unusual, abnormal

Definition

反常 describes behavior, weather, or results that deviate from the expected norm — more formal/literary than 异常 and broader in scope than 畸形 (which implies physical malformation).

adjective
unusualabnormal

Examples

  • 反常。
    Jīn nián chūn tiān de tiān qì fēi cháng fǎn cháng.
    The weather this spring is very unusual.
  • 反常。
    Tā jīn tiān de fǎn cháng jǔ zhǐ yǐn qǐ le dà jiā de zhù yì.
    His abnormal behavior today drew everyone's attention.
  • 反常，。
    Shí yàn jié guǒ wán quán fǎn cháng, xū yào chóng xīn jiǎn chá.
    The experimental results are completely abnormal and need to be rechecked.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

反fǎngo against
常chángnormality

反 means to go against and 常 means normality, giving a sense of contrary to normal.

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 →

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
巾巾jīncloth
Sound part声符shēngfú
尚
尚shàng常cháng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

常 pairs 巾, a cloth, with 尚 as a sound part; the form originally referred to a lower garment.

Open 常 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Good & Bad

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.