恰恰 (qià qià) — exactly, just, precisely

Definition

恰恰 emphasizes that something matches exactly or happens to be the case, often with a sense of fortunate timing. Among siblings, 就 and 就是 are everyday emphatic 'exactly/just', while 恰恰 is more literary and often highlights a precise match.

adverb

exactlyjustprecisely

Examples

。
Tā de guān diǎn gēn wǒ qià qià xiāng fǎn.
His opinion is exactly opposite to mine.
恰恰，。
Nǐ lái de qià qià shì shí hou, wǒ men zhèng yào kāi shǐ.
You came just in time; we're about to start.
恰恰。
Zhè zhǒng jié guǒ qià qià shì wǒ men dāng chū yù liào dào de.
This result is precisely what we expected at the beginning.

Origin

Reduplicated word

构词法gòucífǎ

重叠chóngdiéReduplication

A syllable said twice — for affection, for softness, or simply because that is how the word is said.

恰qiàjust

Two 恰 together intensify the sense of exactly.

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.

忄合恰

Meaning part形符xíngfú

忄Written in full as心xīn

Sound part声符shēngfú

合

合hé恰qià

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

恰 has 忄 (a form of 心) on the left and 合 on the right, which is used for its sound.

Open 恰 →