TongTong
Sign in

时而 (shí ér) — occasionally; from time to time; (reduplicated pattern 时而…时而…) now…now…; sometimes…sometimes…

Definition

时而 emphasizes alternation or repeated recurrence — note the reduplicated pattern 时而…时而… ('now…now…') for contrast. Less frequent than 偶尔 and more literary.

adverb
occasionallyfrom time to time(reduplicated pattern 时而…时而…) now…now…sometimes…sometimes…

Examples

  • 时而。
    Tā shí ér huì qù tú shū guǎn kàn shū.
    He goes to the library to read from time to time.
  • 时而，时而，。
    shí ér Qíng tiān, shí ér xià yǔ, zhè lǐ de tiān qì biàn huà hěn kuài.
    Sometimes it's sunny, sometimes it rains — the weather here changes quickly.
  • 时而，时而，。
    Tā shí ér gāo xìng, shí ér nán guò, qíng xù hěn bù wěn dìng.
    She's happy one moment and sad the next — her moods are quite unstable.

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.

时shítime
而érand

时 gives time and 而 gives a faint sense of and, yielding now and then.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 時; 时 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
日日rìsun; day
Sound part声符shēngfú
之
之zhī時shí
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 時 pairs 日 (sun/day) with 之 as the part that gives the sound; the simplified 时 is not the form described.

Open 时 →

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 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Frequency & Duration

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