HSK 4 Grammar
HSK4 副词 — Key Adverbs
Master 40+ essential Chinese adverbs across 8 categories with an interactive sorting game, error correction, and comprehensive quizzes.
8
Categories
40+
Adverbs
35+
Exercises
语气副词 Mood / Tone Adverbs
Mood
竟然 jìngrán
unexpectedly / to one's surprise
他竟然通过了考试！
Tā jìngrán tōngguò le kǎoshì!
He unexpectedly passed the exam!
这么难的题，她竟然全做对了。
Zhème nán de tí, tā jìngrán quán zuò duì le.
Such a difficult problem, yet she got them all right.
我们等了一个小时，他竟然忘了。
Wǒmen děng le yī ge xiǎoshí, tā jìngrán wàng le.
We waited an hour, and he actually forgot.
Mood
究竟 jiūjìng / 到底 dàodǐ
after all / on earth / actually
Both express emphasis in questions or demands for a definitive answer. 到底 is more colloquial; 究竟 is slightly more formal.
你究竟想做什么？
Nǐ jiūjìng xiǎng zuò shénme?
What on earth do you want to do?
这件事到底是怎么回事？
Zhè jiàn shì dàodǐ shì zěnme huí shì?
What is this matter actually about?
他究竟去不去？
Tā jiūjìng qù bu qù?
Is he going or not, after all?
Mood
难道 nándào
rhetorical emphasis — "could it be that...?"
难道你不知道吗？
Nándào nǐ bù zhīdào ma?
Don't you know? (rhetorical)
难道这是我的错？
Nándào zhè shì wǒ de cuò?
Is this somehow my fault? (rhetorical)
See also: Rhetorical Questions 反问句
Mood
千万 qiānwàn
absolutely must (not) / by all means
你千万别迟到！
Nǐ qiānwàn bié chídào!
Whatever you do, don't be late!
出门千万要带钥匙。
Chūmén qiānwàn yào dài yàoshi.
Make sure to bring your keys when going out.
这件事千万不能告诉别人。
Zhè jiàn shì qiānwàn bù néng gàosù biérén.
You absolutely must not tell anyone about this.
Mood
确实 quèshí
indeed / truly / really
这个问题确实很难。
Zhège wèntí quèshí hěn nán.
This problem is indeed very difficult.
他说的确实有道理。
Tā shuō de quèshí yǒu dàolǐ.
What he said truly makes sense.
Mood
只好 zhǐhǎo
have no choice but / can only
没有公交车了，我只好走路回家。
Méiyǒu gōngjiāo chē le, wǒ zhǐhǎo zǒulù huí jiā.
There are no more buses, so I have no choice but to walk home.
他不来，我们只好自己去。
Tā bù lái, wǒmen zhǐhǎo zìjǐ qù.
He's not coming, so we can only go by ourselves.
钱不够，只好买便宜的。
Qián bú gòu, zhǐhǎo mǎi piányi de.
Not enough money, so I had to buy the cheap one.
Mood
差(一)点儿 chà(yì)diǎnr
almost / nearly
我今天差点儿迟到了。
Wǒ jīntiān chàdiǎnr chídào le.
I almost was late today.
他差一点儿就忘了。
Tā chà yìdiǎnr jiù wàng le.
He nearly forgot.
程度副词 Degree Adverbs
Degree
十分 shífēn
very / extremely
他十分高兴。
Tā shífēn gāoxìng.
He is extremely happy.
这件事十分重要。
Zhè jiàn shì shífēn zhòngyào.
This matter is very important.
Degree
更加 gèngjiā
even more / all the more
下雨以后天气更加凉快了。
Xià yǔ yǐhòu tiānqì gèngjiā liángkuai le.
After the rain, the weather became even cooler.
她的汉语说得更加流利了。
Tā de Hànyǔ shuō de gèngjiā liúlì le.
Her Chinese has become even more fluent.
Degree
稍 / 稍微 shāo / shāowēi
slightly / a little
请稍等一下。
Qǐng shāo děng yīxià.
Please wait a moment.
今天稍微有点儿冷。
Jīntiān shāowēi yǒudiǎnr lěng.
It's slightly cold today.
Degree
尤其 yóuqí
especially / particularly
我喜欢运动，尤其是游泳。
Wǒ xǐhuan yùndòng, yóuqí shì yóuyǒng.
I like sports, especially swimming.
北京的秋天很美，尤其是香山。
Běijīng de qiūtiān hěn měi, yóuqí shì Xiāngshān.
Beijing's autumn is beautiful, especially Xiangshan.
Degree
多么 duōme
how (exclamatory) / what a
今天天气多么好啊！
Jīntiān tiānqì duōme hǎo a!
What wonderful weather today!
这个地方多么漂亮！
Zhège dìfang duōme piàoliang!
How beautiful this place is!
范围副词 Scope Adverbs
Scope
共 gòng / 一共 yígòng
altogether / in total
我们班共有三十个学生。
Wǒmen bān gòng yǒu sānshí ge xuéshēng.
Our class has thirty students in total.
一共花了两百块钱。
Yígòng huā le liǎng bǎi kuài qián.
It cost 200 yuan altogether.
Scope
全 quán
all / entirely
他的话我全听懂了。
Tā de huà wǒ quán tīng dǒng le.
I understood everything he said.
这些书我全看过。
Zhèxiē shū wǒ quán kàn guò.
I've read all of these books.
Scope
光 guāng
only / merely / just
光说不做没有用。
Guāng shuō bù zuò méiyǒu yòng.
Just talking without acting is useless.
别光看手机。
Bié guāng kàn shǒujī.
Don't just stare at your phone.
Scope
仅 / 仅仅 jǐn / jǐnjǐn
only / merely
他仅仅学了一年汉语。
Tā jǐnjǐn xué le yī nián Hànyǔ.
He has only studied Chinese for one year.
这仅是开始。
Zhè jǐn shì kāishǐ.
This is merely the beginning.
Scope
至少 zhìshǎo
at least
你至少要学一个小时。
Nǐ zhìshǎo yào xué yī ge xiǎoshí.
You need to study for at least an hour.
他至少认识五百个汉字。
Tā zhìshǎo rènshi wǔ bǎi ge Hànzì.
He knows at least 500 Chinese characters.
时间副词 Time Adverbs
Time
按时 ànshí
on time / punctually
请按时交作业。
Qǐng ànshí jiāo zuòyè.
Please hand in your homework on time.
他每天按时上班。
Tā měi tiān ànshí shàngbān.
He goes to work on time every day.
Time
从来 cónglái
always / never (with negation)
他从来不迟到。
Tā cónglái bù chídào.
He is never late.
我从来没去过那个地方。
Wǒ cónglái méi qù guò nàge dìfang.
I have never been to that place.
Time
赶紧 / 赶快 gǎnjǐn / gǎnkuài
hurry up / quickly
赶紧走吧，要迟到了！
Gǎnjǐn zǒu ba, yào chídào le!
Hurry up and go, we'll be late!
你赶快把作业做完。
Nǐ gǎnkuài bǎ zuòyè zuò wán.
Hurry and finish your homework.
Time
忽然 hūrán
suddenly
天忽然下起雨来了。
Tiān hūrán xià qǐ yǔ lái le.
It suddenly started raining.
他忽然想起了一件事。
Tā hūrán xiǎng qǐ le yī jiàn shì.
He suddenly remembered something.
Time
将 / 将要 jiāng / jiāngyào
will / be about to (formal)
飞机将要起飞了。
Fēijī jiāngyào qǐfēi le.
The plane is about to take off.
我们将在下周开会。
Wǒmen jiāng zài xià zhōu kāi huì.
We will have a meeting next week.
Time
本来 běnlái
originally / at first
我本来想去，后来改主意了。
Wǒ běnlái xiǎng qù, hòulái gǎi zhǔyì le.
I originally planned to go, but later changed my mind.
这件事本来就不难。
Zhè jiàn shì běnlái jiù bù nán.
This matter was never difficult to begin with.
频率副词 Frequency Adverbs
Freq
重新 chóngxīn
again / anew / afresh
请重新写一遍。
Qǐng chóngxīn xiě yī biàn.
Please write it again from scratch.
他们重新开始了。
Tāmen chóngxīn kāishǐ le.
They started over.
Freq
往往 wǎngwǎng
often / more often than not (habitual pattern)
春天往往下雨。
Chūntiān wǎngwǎng xià yǔ.
It often rains in spring.
不努力的人往往失败。
Bù nǔlì de rén wǎngwǎng shībài.
People who don't try hard often fail.
Freq
偶尔 ǒu'ěr
occasionally / once in a while
我偶尔去那家餐厅吃饭。
Wǒ ǒu'ěr qù nà jiā cāntīng chīfàn.
I occasionally eat at that restaurant.
他偶尔给我打电话。
Tā ǒu'ěr gěi wǒ dǎ diànhuà.
He calls me once in a while.
Freq
再次 zàicì
once again / a second time
欢迎你再次来中国！
Huānyíng nǐ zàicì lái Zhōngguó!
Welcome to China once again!
Freq
老 lǎo
always / keep on (colloquial, often with annoyance)
他老忘记带钥匙。
Tā lǎo wàngjì dài yàoshi.
He keeps forgetting to bring his keys.
别老玩手机！
Bié lǎo wán shǒujī!
Stop playing on your phone all the time!
Category Sorting Game / 副词分类游戏
Drag or click each adverb tile into the correct category box. Hover a tile to see its English hint.
语气 Mood
程度 Degree
范围 Scope
时间 Time
Error Spotting / 纠错练习
Is this sentence's adverb usage correct or incorrect? Judge each sentence.
Comprehensive Quiz / 综合测试 (12 questions)
他通过了考试，大家都很惊讶。
竟然 expresses surprise at an unexpected outcome. Everyone was shocked that he passed, so "unexpectedly" fits perfectly.
没有公交车了，我走路回家。
只好 means "have no choice but to." No buses left, so the speaker had no option but to walk home.
你别把这件事告诉别人！
千万 emphasizes an urgent warning — "you absolutely must not tell anyone." It pairs with 别/不要 for strong prohibition.
我没见过这么美的地方。
从来 + 没 = "have never." I have never seen such a beautiful place. 从来 is used with negation to mean "never."
这件事是怎么回事？你得告诉我。
到底 demands a definitive answer — "What on earth is going on?" It conveys the speaker's insistence on knowing the truth.
我喜欢中国菜，是四川菜。
尤其 (是) means "especially." The sentence singles out Sichuan food from Chinese food in general.
Which adverb means "suddenly"?
忽然 (hūrán) means "suddenly." 赶紧 means "hurry up," 按时 means "on time," and 再次 means "once again."
今天有点儿冷，多穿一件衣服吧。
稍微 means "slightly." The sentence says it's a little cold, suggesting mild degree — not extremely cold (十分).
What is the difference between 竟然 and 居然?
竟然 and 居然 are near-synonyms meaning "unexpectedly/surprisingly." 竟然 is slightly more literary; 居然 is more colloquial with stronger disbelief. In most contexts they are interchangeable.
他忘记带钥匙，我都说他好几次了。
老 (colloquial) means "always / keeps on" with a sense of annoyance. The speaker is frustrated that he keeps forgetting his keys.
别看手机，也要看看书。
光 means "only/just" and implies doing one thing exclusively. "Don't just look at your phone, also read some books."
我想去北京，后来改去上海了。
本来 means "originally." I originally planned to go to Beijing but later changed to Shanghai. It marks the original intention before a change.
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