年轻
The English word 'young' is translated into Chinese as 年轻.
年轻 is used to describe someone or something belonging in the early part of life. You may also encounter the four-character idiom 年轻力壮, which is used to describe a young person in their physical prime.
Meaning: belonging in the early part of life (adj)
What does it mean word for word?
The word 年轻 is composed of 年 (nián), meaning 'year' and 轻 (qīng), meaning 'light', which literally suggests one has had few years or is light in years.
Which one should you use?
While 年轻 refers to being in the early part of life (youth), 年幼 is used specifically to describe being a small child or of a very young age.
How does it change in a sentence?
When using 年轻 as a predicate adjective, it is common to precede it with an adverb of degree like 很 (hěn), even if a strong 'very' is not intended.
Did you know?
- In traditional Chinese poetry, the 'young' stage of life is often symbolized by the 'green' color 绿 or 青, leading to the term 青涩 to describe the 'greenness' or immaturity of youth.
- In Chinese culture, calling someone 年轻 can sometimes be a subtle way of suggesting they are inexperienced or naive rather than just praising their youth.
- Unlike English, where 'young' can describe a baby animal, Chinese often uses the word 幼 or 小 for animals and reserves 年轻 almost exclusively for humans.
Examples in context
- 你可不年轻。You can't be young.This sentence shows how to use the negative form of 年轻.Tatoeba #4263830 by notabene, translation #4728297 by paper1n0
- 女人很年轻。The woman is young.This sentence demonstrates the use of 年轻 to describe a person.Tatoeba #7772406 by jiangche, translation #2429367 by gone2bacolod
- 我们不年轻。We're not young.This sentence shows how to express that a group is not young using 年轻.Tatoeba #10058512 by slo_oth, translation #2240645 by CK
- 那位年轻人在公司里非常出色。（Nà wèi niánqīng rén zài gōngsī lǐ fēicháng chūsè.）That young person is very outstanding in the company.
- 他的年纪很轻，但已经取得了很多成就。（Tā de niánjì hěn qīng, dàn yǐjīng qǔdéle hěnduō chéngjiù.）He is young, but he has already achieved a lot.
- 89 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends are talking about a new colleague.
- 志强 Zhiqiang那个新同事很年轻吧？Nàge xīn tóngshì hěn niánqīng ba?That new colleague is very young, right?
- 晓雯 Xiaowen是的，志强，他才二十岁。Shì de, Zhìqiáng, tā cái èrshí suì.Yes, Zhiqiang, he is only twenty years old.
- 志强 Zhiqiang晓雯，你觉得他有经验吗？Xiǎowén, nǐ juédé tā yǒu jīngyàn ma?Xiaowen, do you think he has experience?
- 晓雯 Xiaowen虽然年轻，但是他很有能力。Suīrán niánqīng, dànshì tā hěn yǒu nénglì.Although he is young, he is very capable.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
