How to say “originally” in Chinese
originally, at first
“Originally” in Chinese is 原本, yuán běn: the meaning, a recording of how it sounds, the characters stroke by stroke.
How to pronounce it
原本 is read yuán běn: 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
A spring beneath a cliff 厂 — the source. It hints at the sound of 愿 yuàn.
木 “tree” with a stroke at the root.
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 “原本”.
More words from the lesson “As before, and again and again”
Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say “originally” in Chinese?
“Originally” in Chinese is 原本, pinyin yuánběn.
What does 原本 mean?
原本 (yuánběn) means “originally, at first”.
How do you write 原本?
原本 is 2 characters: 原 (yuán) — original; plain; 本 (běn) — root; measure word: books. The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.
How do you pronounce 原本?
原本 is read yuánběn. Tones: yuán — second tone, běn — third tone. The page has an audio recording.
“originally” in the lesson “As before, and again and again”
This word is from the topic “Adverbs: exactly how” 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.
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