HSK 5 · Function Words

始终 shǐzhōng “from beginning to end” in Chinese

Traditional 始終

What 始终 means

  1. from beginning to end
  2. all along

How to say 始终

  • Pitch chart of the third tone: dips low then rises, 2 to 1 to 4 on the five-level scale始shǐ3rd tone, dipping
  • Pitch chart of the first tone: stays high and level, 5 to 5 on the five-level scale终zhōng1st tone, high and level

始终 in a sentence

  1. 虽然她有些缺点，但我始终还是爱她。

    Suīrán tā yǒuxiē quēdiǎn, dàn wǒ shǐzhōng háishi ài tā.

    She has her faults, but I’ve always loved her all the same.

    Sentence #377540 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters · translation adapted

  2. 无论外面多么寒冷，房间始终既舒适又温暖。

    Wúlùn wàimiàn duōme hánlěng, fángjiān shǐzhōng jì shūshì yòu wēnnuǎn.

    No matter how cold it is outside, the room is always cosy and warm.

    Sentence #358998 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters · translation adapted

  3. 我们必须始终为灾害做好准备。

    Wǒmen bìxū shǐzhōng wèi zāihài zuò hǎo zhǔnbèi.

    We must always be prepared for disasters.

    Sentence #336856 from Tatoeba

How 始终 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 始 (shǐ) with each of its parts in a different colour
始shǐto begin
  • 女woman · nǚMeaning part
  • 台platform · tāiSound part

女 hints at the meaning (woman); 台 (tāi) hints at the sound. Compare it with shǐ.

The character 终 (zhōng) with each of its parts in a different colour
终zhōngend
  • 纟silk form of 糸 · mìMeaning part
  • 冬part of the characterSound part

How to write 始终

始 8 strokes · 终 8 strokes

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

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

Words related to 始终

Words with 始

开始kāishǐ · to begin原始yuánshǐ · original

Words with 终

终于zhōngyú · at last最终zuìzhōng · final终身zhōngshēn · lifelong终止zhōngzhǐ · to terminate终点zhōngdiǎn · finish line终究zhōngjiū · after all

More words: Function Words & Grammar

亲自qīnzì · personally群qún · group日常rìcháng · day-to-day如何rúhé · how似的shìde · as if首shǒu · measure word for songs and poems似乎sìhū · it seems事先shìxiān · in advance

FAQs

始终 (shǐzhōng) means “from beginning to end” or “all along”. It is an HSK 5 word.
Say it shǐzhōng: shǐ with a 3rd tone, then zhōng with a 1st 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, 始终 is written 始終. The pronunciation is the same.
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type shizhong with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 始终 from the suggestions. Typing shizhong into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
始终 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.