Chinese Conversation · Level 28
90 words
Chinese word
年轻
Pronunciation
Pinyinnián qīng
Meaning
- adjectiveyoung
Example
她看起来很年轻。tā kàn qǐ lái hěn nián qīng
She looks very young.
More examples
年轻的人有很多精力。nián qīng de rén yǒu hěn duō jīng lì
Young people have a lot of energy.
Core concept
A person who belongs to, or seems to belong to, an early stage of life.
Common phrases
很年轻hěn nián qīng
very young
年轻的人nián qīng de rén
young people
比我年轻bǐ wǒ nián qīng
younger than me
Similar words
年少nián shào: Describing a person who is young in terms of actual age.
年幼nián yòu: Describing a child or other person who is still at a very early age.
Definition in Chinese
表示比一般人年纪小，常用于评价人的外表、心态或社会角色的年轻程度。biǎo shì bǐ yì bān rén nián jì xiǎo cháng yòng yú píng jià rén de wài biǎo xīn tài huò shè huì jué sè de nián qīng chéng dù
Word origin
The compound 年 (nián, "year") + 轻 (qīng, "light") presents a person as having relatively little age, then extends that image to a youthful appearance, outlook, or social position.
Usage tips
- English speakers may treat young mainly as an age label, but 年轻 (niánqīng, "young") can also describe an older person's fresh appearance or outlook without stating the person's exact age.
Other meanings
- youthfuladjective
Opposites
- 年老nián lǎooldadjective
- 年长nián zhǎngolderadjective
Related words
- 年轻人nián qīng rényoung personnoun