Chinese word

最

Pronunciation

Pinyinzuì

Meaning

  • adverbmost

Example

我最喜欢那家咖啡店。wǒ zuì xǐ huān nà jiā kā fēi diàn

I like that coffee shop the most.

Illustration for 最 (most)

More examples

我最喜欢周末。wǒ zuì xǐ huān zhōu mò

I like weekends the most.

Core concept

A word that puts a quality or action at the top of its scale.

Common phrases

  • 最喜欢zuì xǐ huān

    like most

  • 最好zuì hǎo

    best

Similar words

很hěn: Shows that a quality or action has a quite high degree.
非常fēi cháng: Shows that a quality or action has a very high degree.

Definition in Chinese

表示在某一标准下达到极限或最高程度，常用于修饰形容词、副词或动词，表示第一或最突出。biǎo shì zài mǒu yì biāo zhǔn xià dá dào jí xiàn huò zuì gāo chéng dù cháng yòng yú xiū shì xíng róng cí fù cí huò dòng cí biǎo shì dì yí huò zuì tū chū

Word origin

The early sense of 最 (zuì, "most") was connected with gathering things into one place, which led to its later use for the highest result.

Usage tips

  • English often uses most with an adjective, but Chinese places 最 (zuì, "most") before the describing word or action.

Related words

Word lists with this word