一向 meaning in English
a period of time in the recent past; (indicating a period of time up to the present) all along; the whole time
Meaning of 一向
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- a period of time in the recent past
- (indicating a period of time up to the present) all along; the whole time
How to use 一向
一向 is an adverb placed before the verb or adjective to say something has been true consistently up to now, often describing habits or character. For example: 他一向很守时。(Tā yīxiàng hěn shǒushí.) He has always been punctual.
一 (yī) means one, and 向 (xiàng) means direction or facing. Picture someone always facing one single direction, never turning, and you get 一向: all along, consistently.
Common mistake: Learners often use 一向 for a single past event or for the future, but it describes a long-running pattern up to the present, so say 我一向喜欢喝茶 (I have always liked tea), not 我一向明天去. Also, 一 changes tone before fourth-tone 向, so it is pronounced yíxiàng in speech.
一向 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
一 yī · one · 1 strokes
- 1
向 xiàng · towards · 6 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
Related words
Words that share a character with 一向.
| 一起 | yīqǐ | (in) the same place; together; in company (with) |
| 一样 | yīyàng | same; like |
| 一些 | yīxiē | some; a few; a little; (following an adjective) slightly ...er |
| 一会儿 | yīhuìr | a moment; a while |
| 一半 | yībàn | half |
| 一边 | yībiān | one side; either side |
| 一点儿 | yīdiǎnr | erhua variant of 一點|一点[yi1 dian3] |
| 一块儿 | yīkuàir | erhua variant of 一塊|一块[yi1 kuai4] |
| 一下儿 | yīxiàr | erhua form of 一下[yi1 xia4] |
| 有一些 | yǒuyīxiē | somewhat; rather |
| 一定 | yīdìng | surely; certainly; definitely; fixed; settled |
| 一直 | yīzhí | straight (in a straight line); continuously; always; all the way through |
Questions about 一向
What does 一向 mean?
一向 (yīxiàng) means "a period of time in the recent past; (indicating a period of time up to the present) all along; the whole time" and is used as a adverb.
How do you write 一向?
一向 is made of 2 characters: 一 (1 strokes), 向 (6 strokes). That is 7 strokes in total.
Is 一向 an HSK word?
Yes. 一向 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 一向 and 一直?
一向 stresses a consistent habit or character trait over a long time, like 他一向节俭. 一直 can also mean continuously without a break, even for short spans or ongoing actions, like 雨一直下 (it kept raining), where 一向 would sound odd.
Can 一向 be used in greetings like 'long time no see'?
Yes, in the sense of a period in the recent past it appears in polite phrases such as 一向可好? (Yīxiàng kě hǎo?), meaning 'Have you been well lately?'. This use sounds formal or literary today.