Adverbs don’t grab the spotlight, but they’re the ones telling you how, when, and how often something happens. In Chinese, a well-placed adverb turns a flat statement into a real observation. This list gathers around 500 of the most common Chinese adverbs you’ll actually use-not the dusty ones from a textbook appendix.
Every entry gives you a plain meaning and a natural example sentence so you see exactly how the word behaves in a real Chinese sentence. Audio playback is right there in the table-tap to hear the word and give your ears some practice. When you’re ready to take your study offline, use the free PDF download button that sits below the table.
We built this for learners who want a clean reference. No fluff, no grammar lectures-just the practical words that help you sound more like yourself. Whether you’re describing your morning routine or sharing an opinion, these adverbs will add the texture your Chinese has been missing.
Use this list as a starting point, then keep going in the Yak Yacker Chinese section for more words, phrases, and study-friendly reference pages.
Quick Quiz
Think you’ve locked a few of these adverbs into memory? The quick quiz below gives you a friendly nudge-no stress, just a fun way to see which ones stick.
Browse the Full List
| Word | Pinyin | Type | Meaning | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 将近 | jiāngjìn | Adverb | 將近|将近[jiang1 jin4] | |
| 少 | shǎo | Adverb | few/less/to lack/to be missing/to stop (doing sth)/seldom | |
| 尚 | shàng | Adverb | still/yet/to value/to esteem | |
| 尤其 | yóuqí | Adverb | especially | |
| 就 | jiù | Adverb | (after a suppositional clause) in that case | |
| 就是 | jiùshì | Adverb | exactly | |
| 就要 | jiùyào | Adverb | 就要|就要[jiu4 yao4] | |
| 尽 | jìn | Adverb | 盡|尽[jin4] | |
| 尽快 | jǐnkuài | Adverb | 儘快|尽快[jin3 kuai4] | |
| 尽管 | jǐnguǎn | Adverb | despite/although/even though/in spite of/unhesitatingly/do not hesitate (to ask, complain etc)/(go ahead and do it) without hesitating | |
| 尽量 | jìnliàng | Adverb | as much as possible/to the greatest extent | |
| 居然 | jūrán | Adverb | unexpectedly/to one's surprise/go so far as to | |
| 届时 | jièshí | Adverb | when the time comes/at the scheduled time | |
| 差一点儿 | chàyīdiǎnr | Adverb | 差一點兒|差一点儿[cha4 yi1 dian3 r5] | |
| 差不多 | chābùduō | Adverb | almost/nearly/more or less/about the same/good enough/not bad | |
| 差点/差点儿/差一点儿 | chādiǎn/chādiǎnr/chāyīdiǎnr | Adverb | erhua variant of 差一點|差一点[cha4 yi1 dian3] | |
| 差点儿 | chàdiǎnr | Adverb | 差點兒|差点儿[cha4 dian3 r5] | |
| 已 | yǐ | Adverb | already/to stop/then/afterwards | |
| 已经 | yǐjīng | Adverb | already | |
| 常 | cháng | Adverb | 常|常[chang2] | |
| 常常 | chángcháng | Adverb | 常常|常常[chang2 chang2] | |
| 常常/常 | chángcháng/cháng | Adverb | always/ever/often/frequently/common/general/constant | |
| 常年 | chángnián | Adverb | 常年|常年[chang2 nian2] | |
| 干嘛 | gànma | Adverb | what are you doing?/whatever for?/why on earth? | |
| 干脆 | gāncuì | Adjective | 乾脆|干脆[gan1 cui4] |
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