HSK 6 · Ideas

例外 lìwài “exception” in Chinese

Same in Traditional

What 例外 means

  1. exception
  2. to be an exception

How to say 例外

  • Pitch chart of the fourth tone: falls from high to low, 5 to 1 on the five-level scale例lì4th tone, falling
  • Pitch chart of the fourth tone: falls from high to low, 5 to 1 on the five-level scale外wài4th tone, falling

例外 in a sentence

  1. 一切规则都有例外。

    Yíqiè guīzé dōu yǒu lìwài.

    Every rule has its exceptions.

    Sentence #1785987 from Tatoeba · translation adapted

  2. 这条规定不许例外。

    Zhè tiáo guīdìng bùxǔ lìwài.

    This rule allows no exceptions.

    Sentence #1517779 from Tatoeba · translation adapted

  3. 我们全都染上了流感,连老师也不例外。

    Wǒmen quándōu rǎnshàng le liúgǎn, lián lǎoshī yě bú lìwài.

    We all caught the flu, and the teacher was no exception.

    Sentence #849962 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters · translation adapted

How 例外 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 例 (lì) with each of its parts in a different colour
例lìexample
  • 亻person form of 人 · rénMeaning part
  • 列a line · lièSound part

亻 hints at the meaning (person); 列 (liè) hints at the sound. Compare it with lì.

The character 外 (wài) with each of its parts in a different colour
外wàioutside
  • 夕evening · xī
  • 卜divination · bǔ

Memory aidEvening 夕 beside a divination crack 卜. Picture fortune-telling done at night, out of doors: outside.

How to write 例外

例 8 strokes · 外 5 strokes

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

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

Words related to 例外

Words with 例

Words with 外

More words: Ideas & Concepts

FAQs

例外 (lìwài) means “exception” or “to be an exception”. It is an HSK 6 word.
Say it lìwài: lì with a 4th tone, then wài with a 4th tone. Press Listen at the top of this page to hear it, or Slowly to hear each tone clearly.
Yes. 例外 is written the same way in Simplified and Traditional characters.
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type liwai with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 例外 from the suggestions. Typing liwai into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
例外 is an HSK 6 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.