Chinese word

道理

Pronunciation

Pinyindào lǐ

Meaning

  • nounreason

Example

我能理解他说的道理。wǒ néng lí jiě tā shuō de dào lǐ

I can understand the reason behind what he says.

Illustration for 道理 (reason)

More examples

她的建议很有道理，我们可以试试。tā de jiàn yì hěn yǒu dào lǐ wǒ men ké yǐ shì shì

Her suggestion makes a lot of sense, so we can try it.

Core concept

An orderly route from facts to a conclusion that makes an idea understandable and convincing.

Common phrases

  • 有道理yǒu dào lǐ

    make sense

  • 说得有道理shuō de yǒu dào lǐ

    make a good point

Similar words

理由lǐ yóu: A reason given to explain why something happened or was done.
原因yuán yīn: The basic cause or underlying factor that makes something happen.
常识cháng shí: Basic knowledge and judgment that most people use in daily life.
逻辑luó jí: A clear and consistent connection between ideas in thought or explanation.

Definition in Chinese

指能说明为何如此的原因，或让人接受的合理理由zhǐ néng shuō míng wèi hé rú cǐ de yuán yīn huò ràng rén jiē shòu de hé lǐ lǐ yóu

Word origin

道 (dào, "way") + 理 (lǐ, "principle") combines a way forward with the principles that organize an explanation, giving the word its sense of a logical argument.

Usage tips

  • English speakers often use "reason" for a personal cause, but this Chinese word often points to an explanation whose logic can be accepted by other people.

Other meanings

  • logicnoun
  • line of reasoningnoun

Word lists with this word