Skip to content
  1. Home
  2. Dictionary
  3. 反倒

反倒

fǎn dào

HSK 7–9

Meaning

  • (coll.) but on the contrary; but instead

Definition

表示转折,与意料相反,相当于‘反而’。

Indicates a turn of events contrary to expectation, equivalent to 'on the contrary' or 'instead'.

Usage

用于连接分句或句子,表示前一件事未产生预期结果,反而导致相反的结果。

Used to connect clauses or sentences, indicating that the previous event did not produce the expected result, but instead led to an opposite outcome.

Examples

  • 1 本想要省钱,反倒花得更多了。(I originally wanted to save money, but ended up spending more instead.)
  • 2 他非但不道歉,反倒指责起别人来。(Instead of apologizing, he went and blamed others.)
  • 3 春天来了,天气反倒变冷了。(Spring has come, but the weather turned colder instead.)
  • 4 听了这个建议,他反倒更困惑了。(After hearing this suggestion, he became even more confused instead.)
  • 5 大家都看好他,他反倒失败了。(Everyone was optimistic about him, but he failed instead.)
View the full HSK 7–9 vocabulary list

Put it into practice

Exam-style HSK drills with instant scoring and explanations.

Find my HSK level

Free · about 3 minutes · no account needed

Look up words like this on any website

The free HSK Training extension shows pinyin, meaning and HSK level when you hover Chinese text — anywhere on the web.

Add to Chrome