HSK 5 · Function Words

基本 jīběn “basic” in Chinese

Same in Traditional

What 基本 means

  1. basic
  2. fundamental
  3. main
  4. elementary

How to say 基本

  • Pitch chart of the first tone: stays high and level, 5 to 5 on the five-level scale基jī1st tone, high and level
  • Pitch chart of the third tone: dips low then rises, 2 to 1 to 4 on the five-level scale本běn3rd tone, dipping

基本 in a sentence

  1. 你不懂基本逻辑吗？

    Nǐ bù dǒng jīběn luójí ma?

    Don’t you understand basic logic?

    Sentence #6563555 from Tatoeba · translation adapted

  2. 这些都是基本问题。

    Zhèxiē dōu shì jīběn wèntí.

    These are all basic questions.

    Sentence #13799566 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters · translation adapted

  3. 他的薪水包括基本工资和提成。

    Tā de xīnshui bāokuò jīběn gōngzī hé tíchéng.

    His pay includes a base salary plus commission.

    Sentence #777332 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters · translation adapted

How 基本 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 基 (jī) with each of its parts in a different colour
基jībase; foundation
  • 其his · qíSound part
  • 土earth · tǔMeaning part

土 hints at the meaning (earth); 其 (qí) hints at the sound. Compare it with jī.

The character 本 (běn) with each of its parts in a different colour
本běnroot; stem
  • 木tree · mù
  • 一one · yī

Memory aidA tree 木 with a mark 一 on its roots: root, origin.

How to write 基本

基 11 strokes · 本 5 strokes

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

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

Words related to 基本

Words with 基

基础jīchǔ · base基地jīdì · base (of operations)基金jījīn · fund基因jīyīn · gene

Words with 本

本běn · measure word for books本子běnzi · book课本kèběn · textbook笔记本bǐjìběn · notebook本来běnlái · original根本gēnběn · (not) at all本科běnkē · undergraduate course本领běnlǐng · skill本质běnzhì · essence本钱běnqián · capital

More words: Function Words & Grammar

何必hébì · there is no need何况hékuàng · let alone或许huòxǔ · perhaps忽然hūrán · suddenly急忙jímáng · hastily甲jiǎ · first (in a sequence)假如jiǎrú · if简直jiǎnzhí · simply

FAQs

基本 (jīběn) means “basic” or “fundamental”. It is an HSK 5 word.
Say it jīběn: jī with a 1st tone, then běn with a 3rd tone. Press Listen at the top of this page to hear it, or Slowly to hear each tone clearly.
Yes. 基本 is written the same way in Simplified and Traditional characters.
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type jiben with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 基本 from the suggestions. Typing jiben into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
基本 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.