(qiān wàn) - whatever you do, be sure to; ten million in Mandarin
qiānwànTraditional: 千萬
Translation
whatever you do, be sure to; ten million
Word origin
Literally 千 (qiān, thousand) times 万 (wàn, ten thousand), ten million. The huge number was borrowed as an intensifier, the way English uses a thousand times over.
- Origin
- compound
- Root
- 千 (qiān, thousand) + 万 (wàn, ten thousand)
Stroke order
千
万
Examples
。
Whatever you do, do not forget the keys.
，滑。
Do be careful, the road is slippery.
。
On no account tell him about this.
。
Be sure to turn the light off before you go out.
。
This city has a population of tens of millions.
千万 (qiān wàn) started as a number, ten million, and that sense survives in 几千万 and in written figures. But nine times out of ten in speech it is an adverb of urgent instruction, the equivalent of "whatever you do" or "make sure you".
It leans heavily towards warnings. The commonest shapes by far are 千万别 and 千万不要 followed by the thing you must not do, and it usually turns up in imperatives or in advice about the future.
The trap is trying to use it in a statement about the past or about yourself. 我千万没去 is not Chinese. 千万 pushes on the listener; it is an appeal, not a description. For emphasis about what actually happened, reach for 真的, 确实 or 绝对 instead.
Where this fits
Used in
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千万: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "千万" (whatever you do, be sure to; ten million): 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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Start your free weekThis word is part of lesson 52.