Chinese word

起伏

Pronunciation

Pinyinqǐ fú

Meaning

  • nounrise and fall

Example

这条路有很多起伏。zhè tiáo lù yǒu hěn duō qǐ fú

This road has many rises and falls.

Illustration for 起伏 (rise and fall)

More examples

股市的起伏会影响人们的理财决策。gǔ shì de qǐ fú huì yíng xiǎng rén men de lǐ cái jué cè

Stock market fluctuations can affect people's financial decisions.

Core concept

A repeated climb and dip across a landscape, feeling, or course of events.

Common phrases

  • 股价起伏gǔ jià qǐ fú

    stock price fluctuations

  • 价格起伏jià gé qǐ fú

    price fluctuations

Similar words

波动bō dòng: A change in a number, amount, or level that moves up and down.
起落qǐ luò: A pattern of going up and down in a condition, result, or situation.
高低gāo dī: The difference between higher and lower levels, heights, or degrees.

Definition in Chinese

表示表面或情况上下高低、波动的变化，既可指地形的高低起伏，也可指情绪、事件等的起落。biǎo shì biǎo miàn huò qíng kuàng shàng xià gāo dī bō dòng de biàn huà jì kě zhǐ dì xíng de gāo dī qǐ fú yě kě zhǐ qíng xù shì jiàn děng de qǐ luò

Word origin

In 起伏 (qǐfú, "rise and fall"), 起 (qǐ, "rise") marks upward movement and 伏 (fú, "lie low") marks downward movement, so the formation mirrors the meaning.

Usage tips

  • For route talk, the word describes repeated climbs and descents rather than a single slope, so it helps distinguish a rolling road from one that simply goes uphill.

Other meanings

  • fluctuationnoun
  • ups and downsnoun

Opposites

  • 稳定性wěn dìng xìngstabilitynoun

Related words

  • 起伏不定qǐ fú bú dìngunpredictably changingidiom
  • 跌宕起伏diē dàng qǐ fúfull of ups and downsidiom

Word lists with this word