Meaning of 开心
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to feel happy
- to rejoice
- to have a great time
- to make fun of sb
How to use 开心
开心 is a very common everyday word for feeling happy or having a good time, often with 很 or 非常 before it. It can also describe an event, as in 玩得很开心. Example: 今天我很开心。(Jīntiān wǒ hěn kāixīn.) I am very happy today.
开心 is made of 开 (kāi), to open, and 心 (xīn), heart. When your heart opens up, you feel happy.
Common mistake: Learners often write 开 with an extra stroke or confuse it with 井 (jǐng), well. Also, 开心 is about how someone feels, while 快乐 (kuàilè) is the word used in fixed wishes like 生日快乐, so 生日开心 sounds unnatural.
开心 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.
开 kāi · to open · 4 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
心 xīn · heart · 4 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
Related words
Words that share a character with 开心.
| 打开 | dǎkāi | to open; to show (a ticket) |
| 开玩笑 | kāi wánxiào | to play a joke; to make fun of; to joke |
| 开车 | kāichē | to drive a car (or train etc); (slang) to post sexual content online; to make a sexual jok |
| 开会 | kāihuì | to hold or attend a meeting |
| 离开 | líkāi | to depart; to leave |
| 小心 | xiǎoxīn | to be careful; to take care |
| 关心 | guānxīn | to be concerned about; to care about |
| 走开 | zǒukāi | to leave; to walk away; to beat it; to move aside |
| 中心 | zhōngxīn | center; heart; core |
| 放心 | fàngxīn | to feel relieved; to feel reassured |
| 心情 | xīnqíng | mood; frame of mind |
| 心里 | xīnlǐ | chest; heart; mind |
Questions about 开心
What does 开心 mean?
开心 (kāixīn) means "to feel happy; to rejoice" and is used as a adjective and verb.
How do you write 开心?
开心 is made of 2 characters: 开 (4 strokes), 心 (4 strokes). That is 8 strokes in total.
Is 开心 an HSK word?
Yes. 开心 is on the HSK 2 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 开心 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 开心 is written 開心.
What is the difference between 开心 and 高兴?
Both mean happy and are often interchangeable. 高兴 (gāoxìng) is common in polite phrases like 很高兴认识你, while 开心 feels a little more casual and emotional.
How is 开心 used to mean making fun of someone?
In the pattern 拿某人开心, 开心 means to tease or joke at someone's expense, for example 别拿我开心 (bié ná wǒ kāixīn), don't make fun of me. This use is less common than the meaning happy.