How to say “start” in Chinese
start (an engine); launch (a war)
“Start” in Chinese is 发动, fā dòng: the meaning, a recording of how it sounds, the characters stroke by stroke and examples.
How to pronounce it
发动 is read fā dòng: 2 syllables. The tone is part of the word: with another melody you get another word, or just a jumble of sounds.
How to write it
Its second reading is fà, “hair”: in 头发 it sounds with the neutral tone, fa.
On the right, 力 “strength”.
Strokes go in order: top to bottom and left to right, horizontal before vertical. Tap a character to open its page, with the strokes shown large and the words it appears in. To train your hand, print a handwriting sheet for “发动”.
Examples
Sentences from the course lessons with 发动. Tap the sound icon to listen.
- 是谁发动了这场战争？shìshéifādònglezhèchǎngzhànzhēngWho started this war?
- 敌人突然发动了攻击。díréntūránfādònglegōngjīThe enemy suddenly attacked.
More words from the lesson “How a war begins”
Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say “start” in Chinese?
“Start” in Chinese is 发动, pinyin fādòng.
What does 发动 mean?
发动 (fādòng) means “start (an engine); launch (a war)”.
How do you write 发动?
发动 is 2 characters: 发 (fā) — send, emit; 动 (dòng) — move. The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.
How do you pronounce 发动?
发动 is read fādòng. Tones: fā — first tone, dòng — fourth tone. The page has a native speaker recording.
“start” in the lesson “How a war begins”
This word is from the topic “Peace, war and diplomacy” of HSK 6. In the lesson you hear it in a dialogue, build a sentence with it and say it out loud. Start for free, no sign-up needed.
Start for free