反 meaning in English

fǎn

contrary; in reverse

HSK 4adjectiveverbadverb4 strokes

Meaning of 反

Definitions from CC-CEDICT.

fǎn

contrary
in reverse
inside out or upside down
to reverse
to return
to oppose
opposite
against

How to use 反

反 rarely stands alone in speech. It mostly appears in words like 反对 (fǎnduì, to oppose), 相反 (xiāngfǎn, opposite) and 反而 (fǎn'ér, instead). Example: 我反对这个计划。(Wǒ fǎnduì zhège jìhuà.) I am against this plan.

No component data is given here, so use the shape itself. Picture 反 (fǎn) as a hand pushing back against a slanted wall: the top stroke and the long sweep form the wall, and the 又 inside is the hand flipping things the other way.

Common mistake: Learners often confuse 反而 (fǎn'ér) with 但是 (dànshì). 反而 means the result went against what you expected, as in 吃了药，反而更难受 (after taking the medicine, I actually felt worse). It is not a general word for but.

反 in example sentences

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

这zhè几jǐ年nián的de天tiān气qì很hěn反fǎn常cháng。

We've been having strange weather the past few years.

他tā真zhēn的de让ràng我wǒ很hěn反fǎn感gǎn。

He really turns me off.

你nǐ可kě能néng是shì对duì的de，但dàn我wǒ和hé你nǐ意yì见jiàn相xiāng反fǎn。

You may be right, but I am against your opinion.

你nǐ今jīn儿ér有yǒu点diǎn反fǎn常cháng.

There's something off about you today.

他tā反fǎn对duì妻qī子zǐ在zài外wài工gōng作zuò。

He objected to his wife working outside.

Stroke order for each character

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

反 fǎn · contrary · 4 strokes

Related words

Words that share a character with 反.

反正	fǎnzhèng	anyway; in any case
反对	fǎnduì	to oppose; to be against; to object to
反应	fǎnyìng	to react; to respond
反复	fǎnfù	repeatedly; over and over
相反	xiāngfǎn	opposite; contrary
反而	fǎn'ér	on the contrary; instead
反映	fǎnyìng	to mirror; to reflect
违反	wéifǎn	to violate (a law)
反抗	fǎnkàng	to resist; to rebel
反响	fǎnxiǎng	repercussions; reaction
反问	fǎnwèn	to ask (a question) in reply; to answer a question with a question
反击	fǎnjī	to strike back; to beat back; to counterattack

Questions about 反

What does 反 mean?

反 (fǎn) means "contrary; in reverse" and is used as a adjective, verb and adverb.

How do you write 反?

反 is made of 1 character: 反 (4 strokes). That is 4 strokes in total.

Is 反 an HSK word?

Yes. 反 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.

What is the difference between 反正 and 反而?

反正 (fǎnzhèng) means anyway or in any case. It shows that the outcome stays the same regardless. 反而 (fǎn'ér) means on the contrary, so the result is the opposite of what you expected.

How do you say a shirt is inside out in Chinese?

You can say 衣服穿反了 (yīfu chuān fǎn le), which means the clothes are on inside out or backwards. Here 反 means reversed or the wrong way round.