大二
dà'èr
The Chinese word for sophomore is 大二 (dà'èr). If unsure, use 大二. Wiktionary also lists 大二生 (dà'èrshēng).
Meaning: second-year student (noun)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 大二 | dà'èr |
| 大二生 | dà'èrshēng |
The term is used to refer to a student in their second year of university.
What does it mean word for word?
大二 is a contraction of 大学二年级 (dàxué èr niánjí). The 大 refers to university and 二 means two, with the context implying the second year of study.
Which one should you use?
大二 is the general term for the second year, whereas 大一 (dà yī) is used to refer to a freshman.
How does it change in a sentence?
You can use 大二 to refer to the second year, but adding the suffix 生 (shēng), meaning student, creates 大二生, which specifically refers to the person (the sophomore).
How do you pronounce it?
dà'èr
Did you know?
- Unlike the English 'sophomore', which comes from Greek words meaning 'wise fool', 大二 is purely functional and carries no irony or judgment about the student's wisdom.
- In many parts of China, students will use the term 学姐 (xuéjiě) to refer to a female sophomore who is a senior to them, even if they use the numerical term for her grade level in other contexts.
- The word for 'student' used in 大二生, which is 生 (shēng), is the same character found in the word for 'birth' or 'to be born'.
Examples in context
- 我妹妹是大二的学生。Wǒ mèimei shì dà'èr de xuésheng.My younger sister is a sophomore.
- 大二的课程比较难。Dà'èr de kèchéng bǐjiào nán.Sophomore courses are quite difficult.
- 他是大二的学生吗？Tā shì dà'èr de xuésheng ma?Is he a sophomore?
Example conversation
Two students are talking about their academic year in a university hallway.
- 佳怡 Jiayi志强，你是大二的吗？Zhìqiáng, nǐ shì dà'èr de ma?Zhiqiang, are you a sophomore?
- 志强 Zhiqiang是的，我今年大二。Shì de, wǒ jīnnián dà'èr.Yes, I am a sophomore this year.
- 佳怡 Jiayi那我也是大二了。Nà wǒ yě shì dà'èr le.Then I am also a sophomore.
- 志强 Zhiqiang太好了，那我们是同学。Tài hǎole, nà wǒmen shì tóngxué.Great, then we are classmates.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “sophomore” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
