好女孩
hǎo nǚhái
The phrase 'good girl' in Chinese is 好女孩 (hǎo nǚhái).
好女孩 is used to describe the character or behavior of a female child or a young woman who is well-behaved or virtuous.
What does it mean word for word?
好女孩 is composed of 好, meaning 'good' and 女孩, meaning 'girl'.
Which one should you use?
While 好女孩 specifically refers to a female, the phrase 好孩子 (hǎo háizi) is a gender-neutral way to say 'good child'.
How do you pronounce it?
hǎo nǚhái
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers should avoid using 好女孩 as a direct compliment to an adult woman in a romantic or casual social context, as it can sound patronizing or overly infantile in Chinese.
Did you know?
- The character 好 (hǎo) is pictographically composed of the radicals for 'woman' and 'child', symbolizing a harmonious relationship between them.
- When praising a child's behavior, Chinese speakers often use 乖 (guāi) instead of 好 (hǎo) to express that a child is obedient or well-behaved.
- In modern internet slang, the term 好女孩 is sometimes used ironically to describe a woman who follows social rules only to hide a rebellious or chaotic private life.
Examples in context
- 你是一个好女孩。You are a good girl.
- 乖女孩，你表演得太棒了！Good girl, you performed wonderfully!
- 她是一个好女孩。Tā shì yígè hǎo nǚhái.She is a good girl.
- 大家都说她是好女孩。Dàjiā dōu shuō tā shì hǎo nǚhái.Everyone says she is a good girl.
- 做一个好女孩很重要。Zuò yí gè hǎo nǚhái hěn zhòngyào.Being a good girl is very important.
Example conversation
A father is praising his daughter for her polite behavior.
- 志强 Zhiqiang梓涵真是一个好女孩。Zǐhán zhēn shì yígè hǎo nǚhái.Zihan is truly a good girl.
- 梓涵 Zihan谢谢爸爸的夸奖。Xièxiè bàba de kuājiǎng.Thank you for the praise, Dad.
- 志强 Zhiqiang你要一直做个好女孩。Nǐ yào yìzhí zuò gè hǎo nǚhái.You should always be a good girl.
- 梓涵 Zihan我会努力的。Wǒ huì nǔlì de.I will work hard at it.
