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Level Upper-Intermediate Chinese · HSK 4

Even, Especially, As If: 甚至, 尤其, 似乎 and 像…似的

These words help you build up a description: 甚至 adds the most surprising case, 尤其 picks out the one that stands out, and 似乎 and 像…似的 say how something appears without committing to it.

甚至: even

甚至 (shènzhì) adds a further, stronger or more surprising example, usually after a first one: 他忙得没时间吃饭，甚至没时间睡觉 (he's so busy he has no time to eat, even to sleep). It can stand before a noun or before the verb. It often pairs with 都 or 也.

Compare 连…都 (even), which you met at B1: 连 highlights a single item inside a sentence; 甚至 adds a new step to a list. The two often appear together: 甚至连…都.

  • 这里的空气污染很严重，有时候甚至看不见对面的楼。

    Zhèlǐ de kōngqì wūrǎn hěn yánzhòng, yǒu shíhou shènzhì kàn bu jiàn duìmiàn de lóu.

    Air pollution here is serious; sometimes you can't even see the building opposite.

  • 很多人，甚至专家，都没想到会这样。

    Hěn duō rén, shènzhì zhuānjiā, dōu méi xiǎngdào huì zhèyàng.

    Many people, even experts, didn't see this coming.

尤其 and 特别是: especially

尤其 (yóuqí) singles out one member of a group: 我喜欢水果，尤其是苹果 (I like fruit, especially apples). Before a noun use 尤其是; before an adjective or verb, 尤其 alone: 今天尤其冷. 特别是 (tèbié shì) is a spoken equivalent before nouns.

Unlike English 'Especially in winter, it's cold', Chinese doesn't open a sentence with 尤其: give the general statement first, then single one out (这里很冷，尤其是冬天). A subject goes before 尤其 when it is followed by a verb or adjective: 他的中文很好，口语尤其好.

  • 学汉语很有意思，尤其是学成语。

    Xué Hànyǔ hěn yǒu yìsi, yóuqí shì xué chéngyǔ.

    Learning Chinese is great fun, especially learning idioms.

  • 这几天尤其忙。

    Zhè jǐ tiān yóuqí máng.

    These last few days have been especially busy.

似乎 and 像…似的: as if

似乎 (sìhū) means 'seemingly, it seems': a soft, slightly literary way of saying how things look. 他似乎不太高兴 (he doesn't seem very happy). 好像 (hǎoxiàng) is the everyday equivalent.

像 … 似的 (xiàng … shìde) means 'like, as if': 她高兴得像个孩子似的 (she was as happy as a child). Note that 似 is read shì in 似的, but sì in 似乎. 像…一样 is a neutral equivalent.

  • 他似乎对这个话题不感兴趣。

    Tā sìhū duì zhège huàtí bù gǎn xìngqù.

    He doesn't seem interested in this topic.

  • 她高兴得像个孩子似的。

    Tā gāoxìng de xiàng ge háizi shìde.

    She was as happy as a child.

Common mistakes

  • ✗我喜欢运动，尤其游泳。

    ✓我喜欢运动，尤其是游泳。

    Wǒ xǐhuan yùndòng, yóuqí shì yóu yǒng.

    When you single out one member of a group (a noun or a named activity like 游泳), the standard form is 尤其是, like English 'especially' + noun. 尤其 alone is an adverb before an adjective or verb phrase: 尤其喜欢游泳, 今天尤其冷.

  • ✗他似的很累。

    ✓他似乎很累。

    Tā sìhū hěn lèi.

    似乎 (sìhū) is an adverb before the predicate; 似的 (shìde) closes a 像… comparison.

  • ✗甚至他不知道。

    ✓连他都不知道。

    Lián tā dōu bù zhīdào.

    To highlight one surprising person inside a sentence, use 连…都 (English just stresses 'even he'). 甚至 adds a further step after something else has been said, and usually still takes 都 / 也: 大家都不知道，甚至连他都不知道.

Questions learners ask

Is 尤其 formal?

Slightly. In casual speech 特别是 is more common before a noun, and 特别 before an adjective.

Will I see 甚至 again?

Yes: at C1 it returns alongside 何况 and 更不用说, in longer arguments.

Practice this in lessons

The Upper-Intermediate Chinese lessons teach this step by step, with exercises and review built in.

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