Comparing "gaoxing" and "kaixin"

Revision as of 03:36, 24 August 2021 by TomConnelly (talk | contribs)

Both 高兴 and 开心 can translated to mean happy, elated, or joyous. Both can be used in formal/informal settings and are often paired with “很”, “非常”, “十分”. A key difference is 高兴 is both an adjective and a verb, whereas 开心 is only an adjective. A final difference is 高兴 is used in fixed patterns when saying “nice to meet you” (as in a first time encounter).

高兴 (gāoxìng) 开心 (kāixīn)
Meaning happy, elated, or joyous happy, elated, or joyous
Part of Speechadjective and verbadjective
Formalityflexibleflexible

To say “nice to meet you” (as in a first time encounter) use 高兴

Fixed Patterns

  • 认识你很高兴
  • 很高兴认识你