Chinese word

反之

Pronunciation

Pinyinfǎn zhī

Meaning

  • adverbon the other hand

Example

他很会交际，反之她比较害羞。tā hěn huì jiāo jì fǎn zhī tā bǐ jiào hài xiū

He is good at socializing; on the other hand, she is rather shy.

Illustration for 反之 (on the other hand)

More examples

你常常迟到，反之，他总是准时。nǐ cháng cháng chí dào fǎn zhī tā zǒng shì zhǔn shí

You often arrive late; on the other hand, he is always on time.

Core concept

A pivot from one side of a comparison to its contrasting side, sometimes reversing which side does what.

Common phrases

  • 反之，fǎn zhī

    on the other hand

Similar words

相反xiāng fǎn: Marks the following fact or position as opposite to what was just stated.
另一方面lìng yì fāng miàn: Introduces another aspect or way of viewing the matter.
反而fǎn ér: Highlights a result or situation that is contrary to what was expected.
反过来fǎn guò lái: Shows a reversal in viewpoint, situation, or direction.

Definition in Chinese

表示对比或转折的连接副词，用于引出与前句相反或相对的情况，常见于书面语和正式语境。biǎo shì duì bǐ huò zhuǎn zhé de lián jiē fù cí yòng yú yǐn chū yǔ qián jù xiāng fǎn huò xiāng duì de qíng kuàng cháng jiàn yú shū miàn yǔ hé zhèng shì yǔ jìng

Word origin

反之 (fǎnzhī, "against this") combines 反 (fǎn, "opposite") + 之 (zhī, "this or it"), giving the classical sense "against this" before becoming a formal connector for a contrasting case.

Usage tips

  • Its formal register makes it a better fit for written comparisons and structured explanations than for relaxed spoken chat.

Other meanings

  • vice versaadverb

Opposites

Word lists with this word