Chinese word

但

Pronunciation

Pinyindàn

Meaning

  • conjunctionbut

Example

我累了，但还要工作。wǒ lèi le dàn hái yào gōng zuò

I am tired, but I still have to work.

Illustration for 但 (but)

More examples

他说会来，但没有来。tā shuō huì lái dàn méi yǒu lái

He said he would come, but he did not.

Core concept

A hinge in a sentence: the first fact remains true, while the next clause turns toward a different or limited result.

Common phrases

  • 但没有dàn méi yǒu

    but not

Similar words

不过bú guò: Briefly adds a minor contrast or extra detail without rejecting the earlier point.
但是dàn shì: Signals a direct and clear contrast with what came before.
可是kě shì: Shows a spoken contrast with a feeling of surprise or complaint.

Definition in Chinese

用来表示前后内容的转折或让步，承认前项事实而引出与之相反、例外或受限的后项，常见于句中或『虽然...但...』等结构，相当于“但是”“不过”。yòng lái biǎo shì qián hòu nèi róng de zhuǎn zhé huò ràng bù chéng rèn qián xiàng shì shí ér yǐn chū yǔ zhī xiāng fǎn lì wài huò shòu xiàn de hòu xiàng cháng jiàn yú jù zhōng huò suī rán dàn děng jié gòu xiāng dāng yú dàn shì bú guò

Word origin

但 (dàn, "but") grew from an older sense of "only" or "merely", so its modern connector use carries the idea of limiting or qualifying what came before.

Usage tips

  • English normally uses either "although" or "but" in this pattern, while Chinese commonly keeps both parts in an although-but pattern, making this structure useful to recognize.

Other meanings

  • stillconjunction
  • howeverconjunction

Related words

Word lists with this word