Chinese word

基本上

Pronunciation

Pinyinjī běn shàng

Meaning

  • adverbbasically

Example

基本上我同意你的意见。jī běn shàng wǒ tóng yì nǐ de yì jiàn

Basically, I agree with your opinion.

Illustration for 基本上 (basically)

More examples

他提出的建议基本上可以接受。tā tí chū de jiàn yì jī běn shàng ké yǐ jiē shòu

His suggestion is basically acceptable.

Core concept

A view that keeps the main pattern in focus while leaving small exceptions outside the main claim.

Common phrases

  • 基本上可以jī běn shàng ké yǐ

    basically okay

  • 基本上正确jī běn shàng zhèng què

    basically correct

Similar words

基本jī běn: Mainly with regard to the foundation or key point.
一般yì bān: As is common or normally expected.
大概dà gài: Approximately, based on a rough judgment rather than an exact figure.

Definition in Chinese

表示从总体或主要方面来看，某事物的基本情况或一般趋势。biǎo shì cóng zóng tǐ huò zhǔ yào fāng miàn lái kàn mǒu shì wù de jī běn qíng kuàng huò yì bān qū shì

Word origin

基 (jī, "foundation") + 本 (běn, "root") + 上 (shàng, "on") builds the idea of judging something from its foundation, which yields an adverb for the broad main picture.

Usage tips

  • In conversation, placement near the start of a clause signals that the speaker is giving the short overall answer first, while a later number or condition can mark what the summary leaves out.

Other meanings

  • generallyadverb
  • nearlyadverb

Related words

Word lists with this word