Chinese Conversation · Level 11
90 words
Chinese word
去年
Pronunciation
Pinyinqù nián
Meaning
- adverblast year
Example
去年我们搬家了。qù nián wǒ men bān jiā le
Last year, we moved.
More examples
去年我去了北京。qù nián wǒ qù le běi jīng
Last year, I went to Beijing.
Core concept
The single calendar year immediately behind the present year.
Common phrases
去年去北京qù nián qù běi jīng
go to Beijing last year
去年学汉语qù nián xué hàn yǔ
learn Chinese last year
Similar words
今年jīn nián: Means the calendar year that includes the present time.
明年míng nián: Means the whole calendar year after the current year.
Definition in Chinese
指从现在起往前推的一整年，即上一年。zhǐ cóng xiàn zài qǐ wǎng qián tuī de yì zhěng nián jí shàng yì nián
Word origin
The word combines 去 (qù, "leave") with 年 (nián, "year"), so a year that has left the present becomes the year immediately before it.
Usage tips
- A time word alone does not show whether an event is complete; Chinese still uses the rest of the sentence to show completion or ongoing action.
Opposites
- 明年míng niánnext yearadverb