Chinese word

昔日

Pronunciation

Pinyinxī rì

Meaning

  • adverbin the past

Example

他昔日在这家公司工作过。tā xī rì zài zhè jiā gōng sī gōng zuò guò

He worked for this company in the past.

Illustration for 昔日 (in the past)

More examples

修复后，老街区昔日依旧吸引许多游客。xiū fù hòu lǎo jiē qū xī rì yī jiù xī yǐn xǔ duō yóu kè

After restoration, the old neighborhood still attracts many tourists, just as it did in the past.

Core concept

A marker for a period that has passed, viewed from the present and often recalled as a former stage of life.

Common phrases

  • 昔日依旧xī rì yī jiù

    remain as in the old days

  • 昔日重现xī rì chóng xiàn

    the old days come back

Similar words

以前yǐ qián: Means during a period before a given time or event.
曾经céng jīng: Shows that an action or experience occurred at some time before now.
从前cóng qián: Names earlier times or past ways of living in natural spoken language.

Definition in Chinese

表示在过去某一时间或一段时期发生的情况或存在的状态，相对于现在的既往时，语体偏书面或文雅，含有回顾意味，与“以前”“曾经”意义相近。biǎo shì zài guò qù mǒu yì shí jiān huò yí duàn shí qī fā shēng de qíng kuàng huò cún zài de zhuàng tài xiāng duì yú xiàn zài de jì wǎng shí yú tǐ piān shū miàn huò wén yǎ hán yǒu huí gù yì wèi yǔ yǐ qián céng jīng yì yì xiāng jìn

Word origin

昔 (xī, "former") + 日 (rì, "day") forms a compact word for days belonging to an earlier period.

Usage tips

  • Its register matters more than its basic time reference: it is natural in written accounts and reflective storytelling, while casual spoken Chinese usually chooses simpler time words.

Other meanings

  • the old daysnoun

Opposites

Word lists with this word