本来 běnlái originally

HSK 4 HSK 3.0 · Level 3 Practise with 本来 →

Traditional: 本來

Stroke order

本来 is written in 12 strokes across 2 characters.

本来 — the Chinese character for originally (běnlái), stroke diagram — Stroke diagram for 本来 — originally

本 — 5 strokes
来 — 7 strokes

Senses

original
originally
at first
it goes without saying
of course

Characters in 本来

本 běn — (bound form) root; stem; (bound form) origin; source; (bound form) one's own; this
来 lái — to come; (used as a substitute for a more specific verb); for the past (amount of time)

Character meanings from CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Example sentences

我本来想去，后来没去。Wǒ běnlái xiǎng qù, hòulái méi qù.I originally wanted to go, but then I did not.
这本来是他的书。Zhè běnlái shì tā de shū.This was originally his book.

Related words

本来 is pronounced běnlái and means “originally”.

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