(huí lái) - to come back, to return in Mandarin

huílái

Traditional: 回來

Line drawing of 回来
Coloured illustration of 回来
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Translation

to come back, to return

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Word origin

回来 means 'to come back': 回 (huí, 'to return') plus 来 (lái, 'to come'). 来 was originally a pictograph of a wheat plant, later borrowed for 'to come'.

Origin
compound
Root
回 (huí, to return) + 来 (lái, to come)

Stroke order

Stroke order for 回

回

Stroke order for 来

来

Examples

。

He has come back.

?

When are you coming back?

。

I will come back tomorrow.

。

He is on a business trip and returns next week.

。

Please come back at once.

回来 (huí lái) means to come back, to return. It is used as a verb in everyday Mandarin speech.

Where this fits

Used in

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Mandarin · Free printables

回来: worksheet, infographic and listicle

Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "回来" (to come back, to return): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.

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This word is taught in chapter 4, lesson 6: 回来, 啦, 事情 and 6 more words.