How to Say "Ok" in Mandarin - How To Say Guide

好

hǎo/xɑʊ̯²¹⁴/

In Mandarin, 'ok' can be expressed in several ways depending on the context, with the default form being 好 (hǎo). Wiktionary also lists 明白了 (míngbái le) and 知道了 (zhīdào le).

Meaning: acknowledgement or acceptance (intj)

Ways to say it

“ok” in Mandarin
Mandarin	Romanization (Wiktionary)	IPA
好	hǎo	/xɑʊ̯²¹⁴/ (Mandarin, Standard Chinese, Sinological IPA) /xau⁵³/ (Mandarin, Chengdu, Sinological IPA)
明白了	míngbái le
知道了	zhīdào le

The phrase 'ok' in Mandarin is used for acknowledgement or acceptance. Depending on whether you are agreeing to a proposal, confirming you understand logic or acknowledging receipt of information, different words are more appropriate. In digital interfaces, such as when clicking a button to confirm an action, the term 确定 is used.

Which one should you use?

While 好 generally means 'good' or 'OK', use 行 specifically to express agreement to a proposal or permission. If you want to indicate that you have understood the logic or the meaning of an explanation, use 明白了. To acknowledge that you have simply received a piece of information or a command, use 知道了. In computing contexts to activate an 'OK' button, use 确定.

Related words

How do you pronounce it?

hǎo (/xɑʊ̯²¹⁴/)

Did you know?

The character 好, used for 'good' or 'OK', is a combination of the symbols for 'woman' (女) and 'child' (子).
In a digital interface, you will rarely see 好 on a confirmation button. Instead, Chinese software uses 确定, which literally means 'to determine' or 'to make sure'.

Examples in context

一切都会好的。
Everything will be OK.
This sentence shows how to use 好 to mean 'OK' in the context of a state of being.
Tatoeba #710795 by Yashanti, translation #710797 by CM
聽我說，好嗎？
Listen to me, OK?
This sentence shows how to use 好 to turn a statement into a question like 'OK?'
Tatoeba #6447547 by verdastelo9604, translation #2648779 by CK
好吧，你赢了。
OK, you win.
This sentence shows how to use 好 to concede a point, meaning 'OK, you win'.
Tatoeba #10449481 by GlossaMatik, translation #2722194 by Hybrid
好，我会参加
OK, I will attend.
好的，我们去吧
OK, let's go.
26 more sentences on Tatoeba

Example conversation

Two colleagues are finalizing plans for a meeting.

晓雯 Xiaowen

志强，明天十点开会可以吗？
Zhìqiáng, míngtiān shí diǎn kāihuì kěyǐ ma?
Zhiqiang, is it okay to have the meeting at ten tomorrow?
志强 Zhiqiang

好，我没问题。
Hǎo, wǒ méi wèntí.
OK, I have no problem with that.
晓雯 Xiaowen

那我们明天见。
Nà wǒmen míngtiān jiàn.
Then we will see each other tomorrow.
志强 Zhiqiang

好，明天见。
Hǎo, míngtiān jiàn.
OK, see you tomorrow.

Sources

Wiktionary, “ok” translations and entries 好, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
Word origins: Wiktionary entries OK, 好, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.

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How to Say “Ok” in Mandarin