Meaning of 也好
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- that's fine
- may as well
- (reduplicated) regardless of whether ... or ...
How to use 也好
Used alone or at the end of a clause, 也好 shows mild acceptance, like "that's fine" or "may as well." Repeated as A也好，B也好, it means "whether A or B," usually followed by 都 (dōu). Example: 你去也好，不去也好，我都不管。(Nǐ qù yěhǎo, bú qù yěhǎo, wǒ dōu bù guǎn.) Whether you go or not, I don't care.
也好 is 也 (yě, also) plus 好 (hǎo, good). Think of it as saying "that is also good," which is how you accept something that was not your first choice.
Common mistake: Learners often read 也好 as enthusiastic praise, but it is a resigned or mild "fine," not "great." Also, 也好 is not the same as 最好 (zuìhǎo), which means "had better" and gives advice.
也好 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.
也 yě · also · 3 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
好 hǎo · good · 6 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
Related words
Words that share a character with 也好.
| 最好 | zuìhǎo | best; had better ...; it would be best to ... |
| 好吃 | hǎochī | tasty; delicious |
| 好看 | hǎokàn | good-looking; nice-looking; (of a movie, book, TV show etc) good |
| 好听 | hǎotīng | pleasant to hear |
| 爱好 | àihào | to like; to be fond of; to take pleasure in; to be keen on; interest; hobby |
| 好玩儿 | hǎowánr | erhua variant of 好玩[hao3 wan2] |
| 也许 | yěxǔ | perhaps; maybe |
| 好像 | hǎoxiàng | as if; to seem like |
| 不好意思 | bù hǎoyìsi | to feel embarrassed; to find it embarrassing |
| 好多 | hǎoduō | many; quite a lot |
| 好人 | hǎorén | good person; healthy person |
| 正好 | zhènghǎo | just (in time); just right |
Questions about 也好
What does 也好 mean?
也好 (yěhǎo) means "that's fine; may as well" and is used as a auxiliary verb.
How do you write 也好?
也好 is made of 2 characters: 也 (3 strokes), 好 (6 strokes). That is 9 strokes in total.
Is 也好 an HSK word?
Yes. 也好 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 也好 and 也行?
Both can mean "that's OK too." 也行 (yě xíng) focuses on something being acceptable or workable, while 也好 often adds a sense that the situation has some benefit, like "it's just as well." Only 也好 is commonly used in the repeated A也好，B也好 pattern.
Can 也好 be used by itself as a reply?
Yes. If someone suggests a plan, you can answer 也好 (yěhǎo) to mean "sure, that works" or "might as well." It sounds calm and agreeable rather than excited.