How to say “unexpected” in Chinese
unexpected; accident
“Unexpected” in Chinese is 意外, yì wài: the meaning, a recording of how it sounds, the characters stroke by stroke and examples.
How to pronounce it
意外 is read yì wài: 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
Below, 心 “heart”.
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 “意外”.
Examples
Sentences from the course lessons with 意外. Tap the sound icon to listen.
- 路上小心，别出意外。lùshangxiǎoxīn,biéchūyìwàiBe careful on the road, don't have an accident.
- 路上小心以免发生意外lùshangxiǎoxīn,yǐmiǎnfāshēngyìwàiBe careful on the road, so nothing happens.
- 电影的结尾让人很意外diànyǐngdejiéwěiràngrénhěnyìwàiThe ending of the film is very unexpected.
More words from the lesson “The accident”
Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say “unexpected” in Chinese?
“Unexpected” in Chinese is 意外, pinyin yìwài.
What does 意外 mean?
意外 (yìwài) means “unexpected; accident”.
How do you write 意外?
意外 is 2 characters: 意 (yì) — idea, meaning; 外 (wài) — outside. The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.
How do you pronounce 意外?
意外 is read yìwài. Tones: yì — fourth tone, wài — fourth tone. The page has a native speaker recording.
“unexpected” in the lesson “The accident”
This word is from the topic “Transportation” 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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