HSK 6 · Adjectives

原始 yuánshǐ “original” in Chinese

Same in Traditional

What 原始 means

  1. original
  2. primitive
  3. primeval
  4. first
  5. original (document etc)

How to say 原始

  • Pitch chart of the second tone: rises from mid to high, 3 to 5 on the five-level scale原yuán2nd tone, rising
  • Pitch chart of the third tone: dips low then rises, 2 to 1 to 4 on the five-level scale始shǐ3rd tone, dipping

原始 in a sentence

  1. 这是一片原始森林。

    Zhè shì yí piàn yuánshǐ sēnlín.

    This is a virgin forest.

    Sentence by WillyChina

  2. 请把原始文件发给我。

    Qǐng bǎ yuánshǐ wénjiàn fāgěi wǒ.

    Please send me the original file.

    Sentence by WillyChina

How 原始 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 原 (yuán) with each of its parts in a different colour
原yuánformer
  • 厂cliff · hǎnMeaning part
  • 泉spring · quánSound part

厂 hints at the meaning (cliff); 泉 (quán) hints at the sound. Compare it with yuán.

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.

How to write 原始

原 10 strokes · 始 8 strokes

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

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

Words related to 原始

Words with 原

原谅yuánliàng · to excuse原因yuányīn · cause原来yuánlái · original原料yuánliào · raw material原则yuánzé · principle原先yuánxiān · originally平原píngyuán · plain还原huányuán · to restore原告yuángào · plaintiff原理yuánlǐ · principle

Words with 始

开始kāishǐ · to begin始终shǐzhōng · from beginning to end

More words: Adjectives

优异yōuyì · outstanding优越yōuyuè · superior幼稚yòuzhì · childish圆满yuánmǎn · satisfactory愚蠢yúchǔn · stupid愚昧yúmèi · ignorant斩钉截铁zhǎndīngjiétiě · resolute and decisive崭新zhǎnxīn · brand-new

FAQs

原始 (yuánshǐ) means “original” or “primitive”. It is an HSK 6 word.
Say it yuánshǐ: yuán with a 2nd tone, then shǐ with a 3rd tone. Press Listen at the top of this page to hear it, or Slowly to hear each tone clearly.
Yes. 原始 is written the same way in Simplified and Traditional characters.
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type yuanshi with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 原始 from the suggestions. Typing yuanshi into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
原始 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 written by WillyChina. Character parts and stroke order from Make Me a Hanzi.