回 meaning in English
to go back; to return; to turn back; to turn around; to reply; to answer
Meaning of 回
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to go back; to return; to turn back; to turn around
- to reply; to answer
- classifier for literary divisions (acts of a play, sections or chapters of a classic book)
- classifier for occurrences or times
- Hui ethnic group (Chinese Muslims)
- to curve
- to return
- to revolve
- variant of 迴|回[hui2]
How to use 回
回 is mostly used as a verb meaning to go back or return, often with a place right after it, as in 回家 (huí jiā) or 回国 (huí guó). It also works as a measure word for times or occurrences, and for chapters of classic novels. Example: 我明天回家。(Wǒ míngtiān huí jiā.) I am going home tomorrow.
回 (huí) looks like a small square inside a bigger square, like a path that circles around and comes back to where it started. Picture walking a loop and ending up home again: that is returning.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 回 (huí) with 口 (kǒu, mouth) or 四 (sì, four) because all are boxy shapes, but 回 has a complete small box inside a big box. Also remember the second tone: huí rises, it is not huì (会, can).
回 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.
回 huí · to go back · 6 strokes
- 1
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Related words
Words that share a character with 回.
| 回来 | huílái | to return; to come back |
| 回家 | huí jiā | to return home |
| 回去 | huíqù | to return; to go back |
| 回到 | huídào | to return to |
| 回答 | huídá | to reply; to answer; reply; answer |
| 回国 | huí guó | to return to one's home country |
| 收回 | shōuhuí | to regain; to retake |
| 回复 | huífù | to recover; to revert; to return to (good health, normal condition etc); variant of 回覆[hui |
| 回忆 | huíyì | to recall; memories |
| 回头 | huítóu | to turn round; to turn one's head; later; by and by |
| 返回 | fǎnhuí | to return to; to come (or go) back |
| 回报 | huíbào | (in) return; reciprocation |
Questions about 回
What does 回 mean?
回 (huí) means "to go back; to return; to turn back; to turn around; to reply; to answer" and is used as a verb and measure word.
How do you write 回?
回 is made of 1 character: 回 (6 strokes). That is 6 strokes in total.
Is 回 an HSK word?
Yes. 回 is on the HSK 1 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 回来 and 回去?
回来 (huílái) means coming back toward the speaker, while 回去 (huíqù) means going back away from the speaker. If you are at home and your friend is out, you say 你什么时候回来? but your friend at work would say 我要回去了.
How is 回 different from 次 when counting times?
Both can mean times, as in 一次 and 一回. 次 (cì) is more common and neutral, while 回 sounds more casual and spoken, as in 去过两回 (qùguo liǎng huí), have been there twice.