Meaning of 越来越
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
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How to use 越来越
越来越 goes right before an adjective or a feeling verb to show a steady change over time. It often ends with 了 to stress the new situation. Example: 天气越来越冷了。(Tiānqì yuè lái yuè lěng le.) The weather is getting colder and colder.
越 (yuè) means to go beyond, and 来 (lái) means to come. Picture things coming and going beyond, again and again, so the amount keeps growing: more and more.
Common mistake: Learners often add 很 or 非常 after it, as in 越来越很好, which is wrong; just say 越来越好 (yuè lái yuè hǎo). Also do not confuse it with the 越A越B pattern, which links two changing things.
越来越 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.
越 yuè · to exceed · 12 strokes
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来 lái · to come · 7 strokes
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越 yuè · to exceed · 12 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 越来越.
| 回来 | huílái | to return; to come back |
| 起来 | qǐlái | to stand up; to get up; also pr. [qi3lai2] |
| 出来 | chūlái | to come out; to appear |
| 进来 | jìnlái | to come in |
| 来到 | láidào | to arrive; to come |
| 过来 | guòlái | to come over; to manage |
| 带来 | dàilái | to bring; (fig.) to bring about; to produce |
| 来自 | láizì | to come from (a place); From: (in email header) |
| 原来 | yuánlái | original; former; originally; formerly; at first |
| 后来 | hòulái | afterwards; later; newly arrived |
| 接下来 | jiē xiàlái | to accept; to take |
| 看起来 | kàn qǐlái | seemingly; apparently; looks as if; appears to be; gives the impression that; seems on the |
Questions about 越来越
What does 越来越 mean?
越来越 (yuè lái yuè) means "more and more".
How do you write 越来越?
越来越 is made of 3 characters: 越 (12 strokes), 来 (7 strokes), 越 (12 strokes). That is 31 strokes in total.
Is 越来越 an HSK word?
Yes. 越来越 is on the HSK 2 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 越来越 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 越来越 is written 越來越.
What is the difference between 越来越 and 越A越B?
越来越 shows one thing changing over time, like 越来越贵 (more and more expensive). 越A越B links two things, so as A increases, B increases, for example 越吃越胖 (yuè chī yuè pàng), the more you eat, the fatter you get.
Can 越来越 be used with verbs?
Yes, with verbs of feeling or ability, such as 越来越喜欢 (yuè lái yuè xǐhuan), to like more and more, or 越来越会说 (to be better and better at speaking). It does not work with plain action verbs like 吃 or 走 on their own.