Terms of Time Measurement | ||||
時間測量/时间测量 (shíjiān cèliáng) |
Unit Type | Pinyin | English | Traditional Quantity | Modern Equivalents |
秒 | miǎo | second | 60 秒 = 1 分鐘/分钟 | |
分* (or) 分鐘/分钟 | fēn* (or) fēn zhōng |
minute | 60 分鐘/分钟 = 1 個小時/个小时 |
|
刻 | kè | quarter hour | 8 刻 = 1 traditional Chinese hour (時辰) | 4 刻 = 1 modern hour |
小時/小时 | xiǎo shí | hour | 24 小時/小时 = 1 天 (or) 1 日 | |
鐘頭/钟头 | zhōng tóu | hour (coll.) | ||
鐘點/钟点 | zhōng diǎn | time -hours -specified time | ||
點 | diǎn | hour (of the clock); o’ clock | ||
時辰 | shí chén | Trad. Chinese hour | 2 hours; there are 12 divisions in a traditional Chinese day | |
天 | tiān | day | 7 天 = 1 禮拜/礼拜 (or) 1 星期 | |
日 | rì | day (of the week) | ||
禮拜/礼拜 | lǐ bài | week; also used for day of the week | ||
星期 | xīng qī (PRC)/xīng qí (TW) | week; also used for day of the week | ||
週/周 | zhōu | day of week | ||
月 | yuè | month | ||
年 | nián | year | 12 月 (or 13 when there is an intercalery month) | |
*Note that 分 (fēn) has many different meanings: gram, centimeter, minute, tenth, tenth of an acre, etc. |
Other Time-Related Terms | ||||
其他時間的話/其他时间的话 (qítā shíjiān de huà) |
Unit Type | Pinyin | English | ||
Past | ||||
從前/从前 | cóng qián | in the past; before; formerly | ||
徂歲/徂岁 客歲/客岁 去年 |
cú suì kè suì qù nián |
last year | ||
前年 | qián nián | the year before last | ||
前日 前天 |
qián rì qián tiān |
the day before yesterday | ||
前夕 | qián xī (PRC)/qián xì (TW) | the night before last | ||
前夜 | qián yè | the night before last | ||
上個月/上个月 | shàng ge yuè | last month | ||
上上個礼拜/上上个礼拜 or 上上個星期/上上个星期 |
shàng shàng ge lǐ bài or shàng shàng ge xīng qī (PRC) (shàng shàng ge xīng qí (TW) |
the week before last; two weeks ago | ||
上上個月/上上个月 | shàng shàng ge yuè | the month before last; two months ago | ||
昔者 | xí zhě | in ancient times; in former times -before; formerly | 以往 or 已往 | yǐ wǎng | formerly; before; in the past |
早先 | zǎo xiān | before; some time ago | ||
昨日 昨天 |
zuó rì zuó tiān |
yesterday | ||
Present | ||||
本年 今年 |
běn nián jīn nián |
this year | ||
本日 當世/当世 今天 |
běn rì dāng shì jīn tiān |
today | ||
本月 這個月/这个月 |
běn yuè zhè ge yuè |
this month | ||
本週 | běn zhōu | this week | ||
即今 | jí jīn | right now; at this very moment | ||
即刻 | jí kè | immediately; now; at this moment; at once; instantly | ||
即時/即时 | jí shí | immediately; now; at once | ||
今時/今时 | jīn shí | present times; now; this era | ||
馬上/马上 | mǎ shàng | immediately; now; at once | ||
目前 | mù qián | now; at present; at the moment; currently | ||
目下 | mù xià | now; at present | ||
迄今 | qì jīn | so far; up until now; till now; to date | ||
如今 | rú jīn | now; nowadays | ||
現今/现今 | xiàn jīn | now (wr.); at present; nowadays | ||
現在/现在 | xiàn zài | now | ||
眼下 | yǎn xià | now; at present; at the moment; currently | ||
於今/于今 | yú jīn | now; at; to the present; nowadays | ||
至今 | zhì jīn | up to now; until now; so far | ||
Future | ||||
此後/此后 | cǐ hòu | henceforth; thereafter; hereafter; after this | ||
次年 第二年 來年/来年 明年 |
cì nián dì èr niān lái nián míng nián |
next year | ||
到底 | dào dǐ | in the long run; after all; in the end | ||
到頭來/到头来 | dào tóu lái | in the long run; after all; in the end | ||
而後/而后 | ér hòu | and then; afterwards; later; thenceforward; thenceforth; thereafter | ||
過兩天/过两天 | guò liǎng tian | the future; in the near future; in a few days | ||
後此/后此 | hòu cǐ | after this | ||
後來/后来 | hòu lái | in the future; later; afterwards; then | ||
後年/后年 | hòu nián | the year after next | ||
後日/后日 後天/后天 |
hòu rì hòu tiān |
the day after tomorrow | ||
後首/后首 | hòu shǒu | later -afterwards | ||
後頭/后头 | hòu tóu | in the future -behind; rear | ||
後尾/后尾 | hòu wěi | the end (n.) -in the end; at the end (adv.) | ||
後效/后效 | hòu xiào | future performance; after-effect | ||
明日 明天 旦日 |
míng rì míng tiān dàn rì |
tomorrow | ||
然後/然后 | rán hòu | afterwards; after that -and then | ||
日後/日后 | rì hòu | in days to come | ||
下個月/下个月 | xià gè yuè | next month | ||
Timespan | ||||
半月 | bàn yuè | half-moon -fortnight (as, two-week period) | ||
晡 | bū | afternoon (n.) -after noon (adj.) | ||
晡時 | bū shí | late afternoon (after 4pm) | ||
不久 | bù jiǔ | soon; before long; not long; soon after | ||
產後/产后 | chǎn hòu | afterbirth (n.) -postnatal; after birth (adj.) | ||
成年累月 | chéng nián lěi yuè | year after year and month after month | ||
初一 | chū yī | New Year’s Day | ||
除日 | chú rì | day before New Year’s Eve | ||
除夕 | chú xī (PRC)/chú xì (TW) | New Year’s Eve | ||
公元前 紀元前/纪元前 西元前 |
gōng yuán qián jì yuán qián xī yuán qián |
Before Christ; BC -aka before the common era (bce.); Western-style date | ||
後半晌/后半晌 | hòu bàn shǎng | late afternoon or early evening | ||
後半天/后半天 | hòu bàn tiān | the latter half of the day | ||
後半夜/后半夜 | hòu bàn yè | after midnight; the wee hours of the morning | ||
後期/后期 | hòu qī (PRC)/hòu qí (TW) | the latter part of an era -some future date -a later period (n.) -be behind schedule -take place after the scheduled time (v.) | ||
紀元後/纪元后 | jì yuán hòu | A.D.; AD (L.: anno Domini) after Christ; common era (ce.) | ||
假日 | jià rì | holiday; vacation; days off; leave; break | ||
節日/节日 | jié rì | holiday; festival | ||
厥後/厥后 | jué hòu | afterwards; after this | ||
連日/连日 | lián rì | day after day; for consecutive days; for days in a row | ||
連夜/连夜 | lián yè | all through the night -the same night; that very night | ||
末後/末后 | mò hòu | the end; the final part; at the end | ||
目前年前 | mù qián nián qián | years before present (YBP) | ||
年前 | nián qián | before the end of the year | ||
平日 | píng rì | weekday; workday; ordinary day | ||
前後/前后 | qián hòu | (as a time reference) before and after; about; around; approximately; from start to finish; beginning to end; altogether -(lit.: front and rear) | ||
閏年/闰年 | rùn nián | leap year | ||
閏月/闰月 | rùn yuè | intercalery month; used in the Lunar calendar | ||
稍後/稍后 | shāo hòu | shortly afterward; soon afterward | ||
稍候 | shāo hòu | wait a moment | ||
事後/事后 | shì hòu | hindsight; after the fact; ex post facto -afterwards | ||
嗣後/嗣后 | sì hòu | from that time on; afterward; after then | ||
萬代/万代 | wàn dài | endless generations afterward; an eternity | ||
午前 | wǔ qián | before noon -the forenoon | ||
小年夜 | xiǎo nián yè | the night before lunar New Year’s Eve | ||
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(!) | Simplified character is completely different from the Traditional character |
A.C. | ancient Chinese |
ab. | abbreviation |
acctg. | accounting |
adj. | adjective or adjectival phrase (in Chinese an adj. is often simply a v. or n. to which de5 [的] is added: the 的 is usually omitted in this dictionary) |
adv. | adverb or adverbial phrase |
aka | also known as |
alt. pron. | alternate or non-standard pronunciation |
Am. | American; American usage |
anat. | anatomy |
anc. | ancient |
arch. | archaic character, use or meaning |
Arch. | Architecture; referring to Architecture or having to do with Architecture |
ast. | astronomy |
aux. | auxiliary verb |
b. | born |
bce. | Before the Common Era (=BC: Before Christ) |
Bei.pron. | Beijing-style pronunciation |
bf. | bound form |
bib. | biblical |
bot. | botany |
Br. | British; British usage |
Cant. | Cantonese |
CCP | Chinese Communist Party |
CE | Church of England |
ce. | Common Era (=AD: Anno Domini) |
cf. | compare |
Ch.id. | Chinese idiom |
char. | Chinese character |
Chin. | China; Chinese |
Chr. | Christianity (including both Protestantism and Catholicism) |
coll. | colloquial expression or usage |
conj. | conjunction |
contemp. | contempuous |
court. | courteous |
d. | died |
derog. | used as a derogatory term |
dial. | dialect |
dipl. | diplomacy; diplomatic |
dist. | distinguished from; as distinguished from |
econ. | economics |
Eng.id. | English idiom |
Eng.ph. | English phrase |
env. | environment; environmental |
ex. | exclamation |
expr. | expression |
fam. | familiar usage |
fig. | figurative usage |
fmr. | former or formerly |
fr. | from |
Fr. | France; French |
fv. | functive verb |
geol. | geology |
geom. | geometry |
gr. | grammar |
gr.str. | grammatical structure or construction |
gya | billion years ago |
hist. | history; historical |
id. | idiom |
imp. | impolite |
interch. | interchangeable with |
intj. | interjection |
Isl. | Islam |
Jp. | Japan; Japanese; Japanese variant (of a character) |
KXR | Kangxi Radical |
L. | Latin, from Latin or having a Latin root |
L.ph. | translation of Latin phrase (as used in English) |
leg. | legal terminology |
lg. | language |
lit. | literal (ie. word-for-word) translation |
M. | measure word (used as a numerary adjunct for nouns) |
mach. | machines; machinery |
math. | mathematics |
ME | Middle East; Middle Eastern |
mech. | mechanics |
med. | medicine; medical terminology; as used in the practice of, etc. |
met. | metaphorical usage |
mil. | military terminology |
mod. | modern usage |
mus. | music or musical notation |
mya | million years ago |
n. | noun |
na. | name or title |
naut. | nautical, marine or maritime |
NGOs | Non-Governmental Organizations |
nph. | noun phrase; compound noun |
nu. | number |
obs. | obsolete |
oft. | often |
on. | onomatopoeia (as, a sound's written representation of how it sounds) |
opp. | opposite or as opposed to |
part. | particle |
pat. | pattern |
ph. | phrase |
phil. | philosophy |
phy. | physics |
pl. | plural |
pn. | place name, geographic location or geographic feature |
pol. | polite form of address |
pol.sl. | political slogan |
pop. | popular speech; popularly used; common speech |
pop.wr. | popularly written |
pp. | past participle |
pr. | pronoun |
PRC | People's Republic of China; as used in the PRC |
pre. | prefix |
pref. | preferred |
prep. | preposition |
pron. | pronounced; pronunciation |
pw. | place word |
qs. | question sentence |
qw. | question word |
r. | reigned |
rad. | radical- used as a part of Chinese characters |
RC | Roman Catholic |
regl.var. | regional variant |
rve. | resultative verb ending |
sa. | saying |
sb. | somebody |
se. | sentence |
sf. | sentence fragment |
sh. | short form or shortened form |
sl. | slang |
so. | someone |
so.s | someone's |
soc. | sociology |
sp. | specialized language used in technical situations or by specialists (eg.: medical, legal, etc.) |
Sp. | Spanish |
sp.pron. | special or unusual pronunciation |
sport. | as used in sports; sports terminology |
ss. | sample sentence |
st. | sometimes |
st.pron. | sometimes pronounced |
st.wr. | sometimes written |
stat. | statistics |
sth. | something |
suf. | suffix |
sv. | stative verb (an adj. which includes 'be' as in 'be (x)', often simply labeled as 'adj.') |
sw. | somewhat |
Switz. | Switzerland |
T.S. | Tone Sandhi |
tax. | taxonomy (as, scientific naming system); taxonomic name |
TCM | Traditional Chinese Medicine; Chinese herbal medicine |
tm. | trademark |
topo. | topolect (some part of the word has been phonically transliterated from English into Chinese) (aka loanword) |
tr.na. | trade name, business name or product name |
trans. | translation |
tslt. | transliteration |
TW | Taiwan; as used in Taiwan |
u.f. | used for |
undef. | undefined |
usu. | usually |
v. | verb |
var. | various; variety; variant |
vern. | vernacular |
vo. | separable verb-object combination |
vph. | verb phrase; compound verb |
vul. | vulgar |
wr. | written or literary use |
A01 | Agriculture: Soil, Crops and Tools |
A02 | Livestock and Animal Husbandry |
A03 | Nomadism and Pastoralism |
A04 | Sericulture and Silk |
A05 | Trees and Forestry |
A06 | Wood Products, Carpentry and Woodworking |
A07 | Other Misc. Wooden Articles and Furniture |
A08 | Plants and Botany |
A09 | Flowers |
A10 | Fruits and Melons |
A11 | Beans, Nuts, Seeds, Oils and Tubers |
A12 | Molds, Mushrooms and Other Fungi |
A13 | Smells, Aromas and Fragrances |
A14 | Fibers, Textiles and Dyeing |
B01 | Rarity, Precision, Value and Excellence |
B02 | Beauty, Aesthetics, Art and the Fine Arts |
B03 | Colors |
B04 | Pattern, Design, Appearance and Decoration |
B05 | Architecture, Structures and Construction |
B06 | Handicrafts |
B07 | Porcelain and Pottery |
B08 | Clarity, Darkness and Gloom |
C01 | Books, Poetry, Literature and Publishing |
C02 | Myths, Legends, Stories and Reading |
C03 | Documents, Correspondence, Paper and Printing |
C04 | Journalism, News, Newspapers and Media |
C05 | Acting, Theater, Video and Cinematography |
C06 | Voice, Sound, Music and Dance |
C07 | The Eye, Vision and Photography |
C08 | Radio, Television, and Broadcasting |
D01 | Science and Scientific Ideas |
D02 | Biology, Microbiology, Taxonomy and Genetics |
D03 | Anatomy, Physiology, Kinesiology and Bioelectronics |
D04 | Land Animals |
D05 | Insects and Spiders |
D06 | Rivers, the Littoral, the Ocean, Fish, Amphibians, Aquatic Animals and Oceanography |
D07 | Birds and Flying Mammals |
D08 | The Environment, Conservation, Ecology, Pollution and Garbage |
E01 | Chemistry |
E02 | Communication and Humor |
E03 | Technology, Computers, Electronics and the Internet |
E04 | Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry |
E05 | Batteries, Electricity and Light |
E06 | Geology and the Earth Sciences |
E07 | Petroleum, Minerals, Mining and Metallurgy |
E08 | Jade, Gemstones and Jewelry |
F01 | Individual Character Definitions |
F02 | Chinese Culture, Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture |
F03 | Chinese Dynasties and the Dynastic Period |
F04 | Ancient Chinese Warfare and Weapons |
F05 | Chinese Language: Measure Words, Negatives and RVEs |
F06 | Nature and Natural Resources |
F07 | Names, Proper Names and Trade Names |
F08 | Chinese Books, Writing and Characters |
G01 | Diplomacy and International Relations |
G02 | Nationality, Ethnicity, Nations and Peoples |
G03 | Bureaucracy, Government and NGOs |
G04 | Geography and Maps |
G05 | Places and Place Names |
G06 | Topography and Geographic Features |
G07 | Politics |
G08 | Cities |
H01 | Economics and Markets |
H02 | Business, Enterprise, Commerce and Ownership |
H03 | Accounting |
H04 | Sales, Marketing and Service |
H05 | Negotiation, Labor and Management |
H06 | Money and Banking, Finance, Insurance and Investing |
H07 | Products, Companies, Manufacturing and Manufactured Goods |
H08 | Skill, Standards and Quality |
I01 | Education |
I02 | Mathematics, Statistics, Quantities, Series, Progression and Size |
I03 | Prehistory, Protohistory and World History |
I04 | Chinese History and Historical Mythology |
I05 | Japan and Japanese History |
I06 | Sanitation and Hygiene |
I07 | Materials |
I08 | Actions |
I09 | Shapes, Forms and Models |
I10 | Textures, Rough and Smooth Surfaces, and Flexibility |
J01 | The Kitchen, Cooking Techniques, Utensils and Nutrition |
J02 | Foods and Ingredients, Tea and Other Beverages, Spices, Sauces and Seasonings |
J03 | Alcohol, Wines and Spirits |
J04 | Restaurants and Entertaining, Menu Items, Chinese (and Other) Food and Recipe Names |
J05 | Absorb, Inhale, Assimilate and Include |
J06 | Easy, Difficult, Similarities and Differences |
J07 | New, Old, More, Less |
J08 | Instructions, Directions, Opportunity, Problems and Mistakes |
K01 | Language |
K02 | Grammar and Grammatical Constructions |
K03 | Phonetics |
K04 | Exclamations, Expressions, Phrases, Proverbs, Sayings, Slang and Idioms |
K05 | Descriptions |
K06 | Order and Disorder, Methods and Meetings |
K07 | Sources, Results, Solutions, Beginnings, Endings and Waste |
K08 | Comparisons, Combinations, Connections, Distribution and Containers |
L01 | Rules, Law, Justice and Criminology |
L02 | Threats, Safety and Security |
L03 | Winning, Losing, Success, Failure, Luck, Fame and Fortune |
L04 | Hide, Conceal, Secrets, Questions and Answers |
L05 | Seek, Barriers, Limits and Restrictions |
L06 | Help, Strong and Weak |
L07 | Change, Plan, Functioning and Usefulness |
L08 | Groups, Unity, Decision, Agreement and Harmony |
M01 | Logic, Intellect, Talent and Ability |
M02 | Philosophy, Ideas, Knowledge and Inventions |
M03 | Medicine, Health and Pharmacology |
M04 | Memory, the Mind, Psychology and Emotion |
M05 | Human Characteristics and Responsibilities |
M06 | Corruption in Society, Sex and Pornography |
M07 | Public and Private, Manners and Civility, Respect and Honor |
M08 | Real, Counterfeit, Substitutes and Copies; Cheap and Expensive |
N01 | Military Affairs and Intelligence, Weapons, Strategy, War and Peace |
N02 | Protest, Violence, Rebellion, Civil War, Terrorism and Guerilla Warfare |
N03 | Engineering |
N04 | Time and Tides |
N05 | Organization, Competence, Aspiration and Obligation |
N06 | Childhood, Maturation, Adulthood and Old Age |
N07 | Sleep |
N08 | Life, Death, Living and Dying |
O01 | General Physics |
O02 | Space, Optics, Astronomy and Astrophysics |
O03 | Atoms, Atomic Energy and Particle Physics |
O04 | Aeronautics, Aviation, Air Power and Spaceflight |
O05 | Weights, Measures, Flow, Positioning and Distance |
O06 | Fire, Water and Ice |
O07 | Weather, Meteorology and Conditions |
O08 | Float, Wave, Rise in the Air, Spin, Revolve and Other Motions |
P01 | Faith, Religion, Morals and Ethics |
P02 | Great Religious Writings |
P03 | The Zodiac, Astrology and Other Symbols |
P04 | Hope, Fate, Belief and Superstition |
P05 | Women and Women's Things |
P06 | Permission, Acceptance and Rejection |
P07 | Opposites, Categories and Kinds |
P08 | Collect, Assemble, Give and Receive |
Q01 | Sociology, Society and Culture |
Q02 | Relationships |
Q03 | Clothing, Fashion and Style |
Q04 | Behavior, Habits and Addictions |
Q05 | Home, Furniture, Household Appliances, Housewares and Household Activities |
Q06 | Work, Jobs and Careers |
Q07 | Sports, Athletics and Exercise |
Q08 | Toys, Games, Gambling, Entertainment and Leisure Activities |
R01 | Gifts, Prizes, Ceremonies, Achievements and Philanthropy |
R02 | Ships, Shipping, Sailing, Naval Forces and Maritime Affairs |
R03 | Rope, Bind, Tie, Packaging and Packages |
R04 | Travel, Transportation, Air Travel and Tourism |
R05 | the Science of Mechanics, Mechanisms, Instruments, Devices, Machines and Engines |
R06 | Vehicles, Driving and Speed |
R07 | Breakage, Accidents and Disasters |
R08 | Machine Parts, Tools and Their Use |