上 meaning in English
(bound form) up; upper; above; previous; first (of multiple parts)
Meaning of 上
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- (bound form) up; upper; above; previous
- first (of multiple parts)
- to climb; to get onto; to go up
- to attend (class or university)
- (directional complement) up
- (noun suffix) on; above
- used in 上聲|上声[shang3 sheng1]
How to use 上
上 works as a verb meaning to go up or get onto, as in 上车 (shàng chē) to get in a vehicle, and to attend, as in 上学 (shàng xué) to go to school. After a noun it means on, and before a time word it means previous, as in 上次 (shàng cì) last time. Example: 书在桌子上。(Shū zài zhuōzi shang.) The book is on the table.
Picture a long horizontal line as the ground, with a short mark standing up on top of it. Whatever sits above the line is 上 (shàng), up or above, the mirror image of 下 (xià), down.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 上 and 下 because they are flipped versions of each other. Remember that 上 has its short horizontal stroke at the bottom and its tall stroke pointing up. Also note that in words like 晚上 (wǎnshang) and 早上 (zǎoshang), 上 is said in the neutral tone, not a full fourth tone.
上 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.
上 shàng · up · 3 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
Related words
Words that share a character with 上.
| 马上 | mǎshàng | at once; right away |
| 晚上 | wǎnshang | evening; night |
| 身上 | shēnshang | on the body; at hand |
| 早上 | zǎoshang | early morning |
| 上次 | shàng cì | last time |
| 路上 | lùshang | on the road; on the way; en route |
| 上班 | shàngbān | to go to work; to be on duty |
| 上车 | shàng chē | to get on or into (a bus, train, car etc) |
| 地上 | dìshang | on the ground; on the floor |
| 楼上 | lóu shàng | upstairs; (Internet slang) previous poster in a forum thread |
| 车上 | chē shang | |
| 上学 | shàngxué | to go to school; to attend school |
Questions about 上
What does 上 mean?
上 (shàng) means "(bound form) up; upper; above; previous; first (of multiple parts)" and is used as a noun and verb.
How do you write 上?
上 is made of 1 character: 上 (3 strokes). That is 3 strokes in total.
Is 上 an HSK word?
Yes. 上 is on the HSK 1 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
Does 上个月 mean next month or last month?
上个月 (shàng ge yuè) means last month. In time words 上 points to the previous one and 下 points to the next one, so 下个月 (xià ge yuè) is next month.
Why does 上 come after the verb in phrases like 爱上 or 关上?
Here 上 is a directional or result complement. It can show upward movement, closing or attaching, as in 关上门 (guān shang mén) close the door, or the start of a state, as in 爱上 (ài shang) fall in love with.