好看 meaning in English

hǎokàn

good-looking; nice-looking; (of a movie, book, TV show etc) good

HSK 1adjective15 strokes

Meaning of 好看

Definitions from CC-CEDICT.

hǎokàn

good-looking; nice-looking
(of a movie, book, TV show etc) good
in an embarrassing situation

How to use 好看

Use 好看 for people, clothes, places, and also for movies, books, or TV shows that are enjoyable to watch or read. It often follows 很 (hěn) or 真 (zhēn). Example: 这部电影很好看。(Zhè bù diànyǐng hěn hǎokàn.) This movie is really good.

好 (hǎo) means good and 看 (kàn) means to look, so 好看 is literally good to look at. Think of it as the eye version of 好吃 (hǎochī), good to eat, and 好听 (hǎotīng), good to hear.

Common mistake: Learners often say 这本书很好 when they mean the book is fun to read, but 好看 is more natural for books and shows you enjoy. Also keep the fourth tone on 看 (kàn), not a third tone like 好 (hǎo).

好看 in example sentences

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

那nà个ge女nǚ孩hái长zhǎng得de很hěn好hǎo看kàn。

That girl is good-looking.

这zhè部bù电diàn影yǐng真zhēn的de很hěn好hǎo看kàn。

The movie was really good.

他tā出chū去qù看kàn电diàn影yǐng了le。电diàn影yǐng好hǎo看kàn吗ma? 好hǎo看kàn。

"He went out to see a movie." "How was the movie?" "Good."

现xiàn在zài电diàn视shì上shàng没méi有yǒu甚shén么me好hǎo看kàn的de。

There's nothing good on television now.

这zhè件jiàn衣yī服fú很hěn好hǎo看kàn的de。

This shirt looks great.

Stroke order for each character

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

好 hǎo · good · 6 strokes

看 kàn · to see · 9 strokes

Related words

Words that share a character with 好看.

看到	kàndào	to see
最好	zuìhǎo	best; had better ...; it would be best to ...
看见	kànjiàn	to see; to catch sight of
好吃	hǎochī	tasty; delicious
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
看病	kànbìng	to visit a doctor; to see a patient
好玩儿	hǎowánr	erhua variant of 好玩[hao3 wan2]
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

Questions about 好看

What does 好看 mean?

好看 (hǎokàn) means "good-looking; nice-looking; (of a movie, book, TV show etc) good" and is used as a adjective.

How do you write 好看?

好看 is made of 2 characters: 好 (6 strokes), 看 (9 strokes). That is 15 strokes in total.

Is 好看 an HSK word?

Yes. 好看 is on the HSK 1 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.

Can 好看 have a negative meaning?

Yes. In phrases like 要你好看 (yào nǐ hǎokàn), it means to make someone look bad or put them in an embarrassing spot. This is a threat-like expression, so context matters.

What is the difference between 好看 and 漂亮 (piàoliang)?

Both can describe good-looking people and things. 好看 is broader and also works for movies and books, while 漂亮 focuses on visual beauty and is not used for how enjoyable a story is.