Meaning of 原
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- former
- original
- primary
- raw
- level
- cause
- source
- surname Yuan
- (Japanese surname) Hara
How to use 原
原 often means original or former and appears mostly in compounds like 原因 (yuányīn, cause), 原来 (yuánlái, originally) and 原则 (yuánzé, principle). On its own it often goes before a noun to mean former, as in 原计划 (yuán jìhuà, the original plan). Example: 这是原价。(Zhè shì yuánjià.) This is the original price.
Picture 原 (yuán) as a cliff 厂 with a small spring 泉 shape tucked under it. A spring coming out of a cliff is the source of a river, which links to meanings like original and source.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 原 (yuán) with 愿 (yuàn, wish), which is 原 plus 心 underneath and has a fourth tone. Remember that 愿意 (yuànyì, willing) has the heart, while 原因 (yuányīn, cause) does not.
原 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.
原 yuán · former · 10 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
Related words
Words that share a character with 原.
| 原因 | yuányīn | cause; origin |
| 原来 | yuánlái | original; former; originally; formerly; at first |
| 原则 | yuánzé | principle; doctrine |
| 原料 | yuánliào | raw material |
| 原始 | yuánshǐ | first; original |
| 草原 | cǎoyuán | grassland; prairie |
| 原理 | yuánlǐ | principle; theory |
| 原先 | yuánxiān | originally; original |
| 平原 | píngyuán | field; plain |
| 高原 | gāoyuán | plateau |
| 原有 | yuányǒu | original; former |
| 原谅 | yuánliàng | to excuse; to forgive |
Questions about 原
What does 原 mean?
原 (yuán) means "former; original" and is used as a adjective.
How do you write 原?
原 is made of 1 character: 原 (10 strokes). That is 10 strokes in total.
Is 原 an HSK word?
Yes. 原 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 原来 and 本来?
Both can mean originally. 原来 is also used when you suddenly realize something, as in 原来是你 (yuánlái shì nǐ, so it was you). 本来 is more about how things should be or originally were, as in 本来就该这样 (běnlái jiù gāi zhèyàng, it should have been like this all along).
Why does 原 appear in words for land like 草原?
原 also has the sense of a broad, level area of land. That is why it appears in 草原 (cǎoyuán, grassland) and 平原 (píngyuán, plain).