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相反

xiāng fǎn

opposite

How common it is

相反 appears often in everyday Chinese, so it is worth practicing early and reviewing often.

Pronunciation focus

Say xiāng fǎn slowly first, then repeat it in a short phrase. Listen for the tone shape.

Usage note

相反表示和前面的意思完全不同。

xiāng fǎn biǎo shì hé qián miàn de yì sī wán quán bù tóng。

相反 means completely opposite.

Context note

相反常用于对比和转折。

xiāng fǎn cháng yòng yú duì bǐ hé zhuǎn zhé。

相反 is often used for contrast and change.

5 examples

他不懒,相反,他很勤奋。
tā bù lǎn, xiāng fǎn, tā hěn qín fèn。
He is not lazy; on the contrary, he is very hardworking.
天气不是冷,相反很热。
tiān qì bú shì lěng, xiāng fǎn hěn rè。
The weather is not cold; instead, it is hot.
这不是坏事,相反是好事。
zhè bú shì huài shì, xiāng fǎn shì hǎo shì。
This is not a bad thing; on the contrary, it is a good thing.
她没有生气,相反她笑了。
tā méi yǒu shēng qì, xiāng fǎn tā xiào le。
She was not angry; instead, she smiled.
结果和我想的相反。
jié guǒ hé wǒ xiǎng de xiāng fǎn。
The result was the opposite of what I thought.

5 mini stories

原来我以为会下雨,相反,天气很好。
yuán lái wǒ yǐ wéi huì xià yǔ, xiāng fǎn, tiān qì hěn hǎo。
I thought it would rain, but instead the weather was great.
他看起来很严肃,相反,他很友好。
tā kàn qǐ lái hěn yán sù, xiāng fǎn, tā hěn yǒu hǎo。
He looks serious, but in fact he is very friendly.
大家以为会失败,相反,结果成功了。
dà jiā yǐ wéi huì shī bài, xiāng fǎn, jié guǒ chéng gōng le。
Everyone thought it would fail, but it succeeded.
她不是害怕,相反,她很期待。
tā bú shì hài pà, xiāng fǎn, tā hěn qī dài。
She was not afraid; on the contrary, she was looking forward to it.
这个问题不难,相反很简单。
zhè ge wèn tí bù nán, xiāng fǎn hěn jiǎn dān。
This problem is not hard; it is quite simple.

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