分别 meaning in English

fēnbié

to part; to leave each other; to distinguish; to tell apart

HSK 3verbadverbTraditional 分別11 strokes

Meaning of 分别

Definitions from CC-CEDICT.

fēnbié

to part; to leave each other
to distinguish; to tell apart
difference; distinction
in different ways; differently
separately; individually; respectively

How to use 分别

As a verb, 分别 means to part from someone or to distinguish between things. As an adverb, it often means "respectively" or "separately" and comes before the verb. Example: 我们分别去了北京和上海。(Wǒmen fēnbié qùle Běijīng hé Shànghǎi.) We went to Beijing and Shanghai respectively.

分 (fēn) means to divide and 别 (bié) means to separate or be different. When you divide things and set them apart, you can part from someone, tell things apart, or handle each one separately.

Common mistake: Learners often put adverbial 分别 after the verb or at the end of the sentence, like English "separately". It must go before the verb: 他们分别回答 (tāmen fēnbié huídá), not 他们回答分别. Also keep 别 in the second tone here, not the fourth tone of 别扭 (bièniu).

分别 in example sentences

Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.

对duì我wǒ来lái说shuō没méi甚shén么me分fēn别bié。

It's the same to me.

你nǐ今jīn天tiān去qù和hé明míng天tiān去qù也yě没méi有yǒu甚shén么me分fēn别bié。

It makes no difference whether you go today or tomorrow.

每měi堂táng课kè我wǒ都dōu分fēn别bié有yǒu一yī本běn笔bǐ记jì。

I have a separate notebook for each class.

Fred来lái不bù来lái聚jù会huì对duì我wǒ来lái说shuō没méi分fēn别bié。

It makes no difference to me whether Fred came to the party or not.

你nǐ知zhī道dào显xiǎn微wēi镜jìng和hé望wàng远yuǎn镜jìng有yǒu甚shén么me分fēn别bié吗ma？

Do you know the difference between a microscope and a telescope?

Stroke order for each character

Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.

分 fēn · to divide · 4 strokes

别 bié · to leave · 7 strokes

Related words

Words that share a character with 分别.

别人	biérén	other people; others; other person
别的	biéde	else; other
特别	tèbié	unusual; special; very; especially; particularly
分钟	fēnzhōng	minute
部分	bùfen	part; portion; piece; Taiwan pr. [bu4fen4]
一部分	yī bùfen	portion; part of
十分	shífēn	very; completely
分开	fēnkāi	to separate; to part
大部分	dàbùfen	the greater part; the majority; most; Taiwan pr. [da4bu4fen4]
分数	fēnshù	(exam) grade; mark
区别	qūbié	difference; to distinguish
得分	défēn	to score a point (in a competition, test etc); score; rating; grade

Questions about 分别

What does 分别 mean?

分别 (fēnbié) means "to part; to leave each other; to distinguish; to tell apart" and is used as a verb and adverb.

How do you write 分别?

分别 is made of 2 characters: 分 (4 strokes), 别 (7 strokes). That is 11 strokes in total.

Is 分别 an HSK word?

Yes. 分别 is on the HSK 3 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.

How is 分别 written in traditional Chinese?

In traditional characters, 分别 is written 分別.

What is the difference between 分别 and 区别?

Both can mean to distinguish or a difference, but 区别 (qūbié) is the more common word for a difference between things. 分别 has extra meanings that 区别 lacks, such as parting from someone and doing things separately or respectively.

Can 分别 be used to say goodbye to someone?

Yes, 分别 can describe people parting for a while, often with some emotion, as in 分别了三年 (fēnbiéle sān nián), apart for three years. It is more formal and written than 再见 (zàijiàn), which is the everyday way to say goodbye.