只见 (zhī) — only see; just see (emphasizing that nothing else is visible); to one's surprise, see; unexpectedly see (introducing a new scene)
Definition
A narrative or literary marker: 'only to see' or 'suddenly one sees', used to introduce a new scene the speaker has just noticed. Closer to written Chinese than everyday speech.
verb
only seejust see (emphasizing that nothing else is visible)to one's surpriseseeunexpectedly see (introducing a new scene)
Examples
- ，只见。Tā tuī kāi mén, zhī wū lǐ zuò zhe yí gè rén.He pushed open the door and saw a person sitting in the room.
- ，只见。Wǒ wǎng chuāng wài yí kàn, zhī wài miàn xià qǐ le dà xuě.I looked out the window and saw that it had started snowing heavily.
- ，只见。Tā huí tóu yí kàn, zhī tā zhèng zhàn zài shēn hòu.She turned around and saw him standing right behind her.
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