How to say “in turn” in Chinese
in turn; at different times
“In turn” in Chinese is 先后, xiān hòu: the meaning, a recording of how it sounds, the characters stroke by stroke.
How to pronounce it
先后 is read xiān hòu: 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
先生 means “born earlier”: a respectful way to address an elder.
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 “先后”.
More words from the lesson “Little by little”
Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say “in turn” in Chinese?
“In turn” in Chinese is 先后, pinyin xiānhòu.
What does 先后 mean?
先后 (xiānhòu) means “in turn; at different times”.
How do you write 先后?
先后 is 2 characters: 先 (xiān) — first, before; 后 (hòu) — behind, after. The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.
How do you pronounce 先后?
先后 is read xiānhòu. Tones: xiān — first tone, hòu — fourth tone. The page has a native speaker recording.
“in turn” in the lesson “Little by little”
This word is from the topic “Time: at once and little by little” of HSK 5. 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.
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