Expressing "really" with "zhen"

When used as an adverb, the word 真 (zhēn) means "really," or "truly." In English, we also use "really" in this way to intensify our adjectives.

真 (zhēn) Before an Adjective

Structure

真 (zhēn) is used only in exclamatory sentences and comes before an adjective.

真 + Adj.

Example

• 你 真 好！Nǐ zhēn hǎo!You are so nice!
• 你 女朋友 真 漂亮！Nǐ nǚpéngyou zhēn piàoliang! Your girlfriend is really pretty!
• 他 家 真 有钱！Tā jiā zhēn yǒuqián! His family is really rich!
• 小狗 真 可爱！Xiǎogǒu zhēn kě'ài! This puppy is really cute!
• 今天 真 热！Jīntiān zhēn rè! It's truly hot today!

真 (zhēn) before Certain Verbs or 能 (néng) / 会 (huì)

We don't want to get too technical on you, but there are certain other words that can be jazzed up with 真 (zhēn). One type of word is auxiliary verbs, like 能 (néng) and 会 (huì). The other type is psychological verbs like 喜欢 (xǐhuan).

Structure

真 + Verb

Example

• 你 妈妈 真 爱 你！Nǐ māma zhēn ài nǐ! Your mother really loves you!
• 我 真 喜欢 住 在 中国！Wǒ zhēn xǐhuan zhù zài Zhōngguó! I really like living in China!
• 我 真 讨厌 这 种 男人！Wǒ zhēn tǎoyàn zhè zhǒng nánrén! I really hate this kind of guy!
• 你 真 会 说话！Nǐ zhēn huì shuōhuà! You are so good with words!
• 你 真 能 吃！Nǐ zhēn néng chī! You ate so much!