HSK 5 · Function Words

简直 jiǎnzhí “simply” in Chinese

Traditional 簡直

What 简直 means

  1. simply
  2. really

How to say 简直

  • Pitch chart of the third tone: dips low then rises, 2 to 1 to 4 on the five-level scale简jiǎn3rd tone, dipping
  • Pitch chart of the second tone: rises from mid to high, 3 to 5 on the five-level scale直zhí2nd tone, rising

简直 in a sentence

  1. 我听到这个消息时，简直不能相信自己的耳朵。

    Wǒ tīngdào zhè ge xiāoxi shí, jiǎnzhí bùnéng xiāngxìn zìjǐ de ěrduo.

    I could hardly believe my ears when I heard the news.

    Sentence #349182 from Tatoeba

  2. 有些人认为阅读简直浪费时间。

    Yǒuxiē rén rènwéi yuèdú jiǎnzhí làngfèi shíjiān.

    Some people think reading is simply a waste of time.

    Sentence #623220 from Tatoeba · translation adapted

  3. 简直就像电影里的一幕一样，不是吗？

    Jiǎnzhí jiù xiàng diànyǐng lǐ de yí mù yíyàng, búshì ma?

    It’s just like a scene from a film, isn’t it?

    Sentence #14057677 from Tatoeba · translation adapted

How 简直 is built

Each colour is one part of the character. Parts repeat across thousands of characters, so learning them makes new words easier. See all 214 in our radicals chart.

The character 简 (jiǎn) with each of its parts in a different colour
简jiǎnsimple
  • ⺮bamboo form of 竹 · zhúMeaning part
  • 间between · jiānSound part

⺮ hints at the meaning (bamboo); 间 (jiān) hints at the sound. Compare it with jiǎn.

The character 直 (zhí) with each of its parts in a different colour
直zhístraight
  • 十ten · shí
  • 目eye · mù
  • 一one · yī

Memory aidPicture an eye 目 looking straight down a line: straight.

How to write 简直

简 13 strokes · 直 8 strokes

Watch the order, then press Try writing it and draw each stroke in the grid. Each stroke is checked as you go.

简直 (jiǎnzhí) stroke order chart: each stroke of the characters in the order you write them
Stroke order chart for 简直 (jiǎnzhí). Red marks the next stroke, so you can copy it onto paper one step at a time.

Words related to 简直

Words with 简

简单jiǎndān · simple简历jiǎnlì · curriculum vitae (CV)简化jiǎnhuà · to simplify精简jīngjiǎn · to streamline简陋jiǎnlòu · simple and crude简要jiǎnyào · brief简体字jiǎntǐzì · simplified Chinese characters

Words with 直

一直yìzhí · always直到zhídào · until直接zhíjiē · direct (opposite: indirect 间接)直zhí · straight垂直chuízhí · vertical直径zhíjìng · diameter直播zhíbō · live broadcast理直气壮lǐzhíqìzhuàng · bold and confident (being in the right)

More words: Function Words & Grammar

基本jīběn · basic急忙jímáng · hastily甲jiǎ · first (in a sequence)假如jiǎrú · if尽快jǐnkuài · as soon as possible尽量jǐnliàng · as much as possible极其jíqí · extremely居然jūrán · unexpectedly

FAQs

简直 (jiǎnzhí) means “simply” or “really”. It is an HSK 5 word.
Say it jiǎnzhí: jiǎn with a 3rd tone, then zhí with a 2nd tone. Press Listen at the top of this page to hear it, or Slowly to hear each tone clearly.
In Traditional characters, used in Taiwan and Hong Kong, 简直 is written 簡直. The pronunciation is the same.
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type jianzhi with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 简直 from the suggestions. Typing jianzhi into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
简直 is an HSK 5 word in the HSK 2.0 word lists.

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Sources: meaning and pinyin checked by a native Mandarin teacher against the official HSK lists. Extra meanings from CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0). Example sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR). Character parts and stroke order from Make Me a Hanzi.