Chinese word

晚上

Pronunciation

Pinyinwǎn shàng

Meaning

  • nounevening

Example

我们晚上一起去看电影吧。wǒ men wǎn shàng yì qǐ qù kàn diàn yǐng ba

Let's go to the movies together tonight.

Illustration for 晚上 (evening)

More examples

他晚上在家看电视。tā wǎn shàng zài jiā kàn diàn shì

He watches TV at home in the evening.

Core concept

A part of the day that begins as daylight fades and can hold anything from a meal out to a late-night activity.

Common phrases

  • 晚上吃饭wǎn shàng chī fàn

    eat dinner in the evening

  • 晚上看电影wǎn shàng kàn diàn yǐng

    watch a movie in the evening

  • 晚上学习wǎn shàng xué xí

    study in the evening

Similar words

下午xià wǔ: The afternoon period from after midday until the approach of evening.
早上zǎo shàng: The early part of the day from waking until later in the morning.
中午zhōng wǔ: The midday period centered on about twelve o'clock.

Definition in Chinese

表示日落以后的一段夜间时间，可指傍晚到深夜的整个时段，也用于指具体的晚间安排或活动。biǎo shì rì luò yǐ hòu de yí duàn yè jiān shí jiān kě zhǐ bàng wǎn dào shēn yè de zhěng gè shí duàn yě yòng yú zhǐ jù tǐ de wǎn jiān ān pái huò huó dòng

Word origin

In the time expression 晚上 (wǎnshàng, "evening"), 晚 (wǎn, "late") identifies the later part of the day and 上 (shàng, "up/on") functions as a time-word element.

Usage tips

  • On a Chinese timetable, a plan marked for this period may still cover several hours, so the exact start time matters more than the label alone.

Other meanings

  • nightnoun
  • late at nightnoun

Opposites

Related words

Word lists with this word