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běn
HSK 2.0 Level 1 HSK 3.0 Level 1

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Definitions

  1. 1. root
  2. 2. stem
  3. 3. origin
  4. 4. source
  5. 5. this
  6. 6. the current
  7. 7. original
  8. 8. inherent
  9. 9. originally
  10. 10. classifier for books, periodicals, files etc

Example Sentences

1 shown
她大約擁有 2000 書。
Source: Tatoeba.org (ID 10376010)

Sentence data courtesy of Tatoeba.org.

Words Containing 本

本国人
běn guó rén

natives of one's own country

实受资本
shí shou zī běn

paid-up capital

照本宣科
zhào běn xuān kē

a wooden word-by-word reading

本草纲目
běn cǎo gāng mù

Compendium of Medical Herbs 1596, compiled by Li Shizhen 李時珍|李时珍[lǐ shí zhēn]

本就
běn jiù

by nature

本我
běn wǒ

id

边际成本
biān jì chéng běn

marginal cost

本金
běn jīn

capital

影印本
yǐng yìn běn

a photocopy

以人为本
yǐ rén wéi běn

people-oriented

本笃会
běn dǔ huì

the Benedictines

日本放送协会
rì běn fàng sòng xié huì

NHK (Nihon Hōsō Kyōkai), Japanese national broadcasting company

资本市场
zī běn shì chǎng

capital market

本息
běn xī

principal and interest (on a loan)

家家有本难念的经
jiā jiā yǒu běn nán niàn de jīng

every family has its problems (idiom)

熊本县
xióng běn xiàn

Kumamoto prefecture, Kyūshū, Japan

本星期
běn xīng qī

this week

副本
fù běn

copy

捞本
lāo běn

to get one's money back (esp. gambling)

本底调查
běn dǐ diào chá

background investigation

日本鬼子
rì běn guǐ zi

Japanese devil (common term of abuse in wartime China and in subsequent writing)

影本
yǐng běn

copy (of a document)

拓本
tà běn

rubbing of inscription

基本需要
jī běn xū yào

basic necessity

牙本质
yá běn zhì

dentin

本拉登
běn lā dēng

(Osama) bin Laden (1957-2011), leader of Al Qaeda

日本电报电话公司
rì běn diàn bào diàn huà gōng sī

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone (NTT)

日本叉尾海燕
rì běn chā wěi hǎi yàn

(bird species of China) Matsudaira's storm petrel (Oceanodroma matsudairae)

日本航空
rì běn háng kōng

Japan Airlines (JAL)

还本
huán běn

to repay capital

低成本
dī chéng běn

low cost

稿本
gǎo běn

manuscript (of a book etc)

草本
cǎo běn

grass

本初子午线
běn chū zǐ wǔ xiàn

the first meridian

本纪
běn jì

biographic sketch of an emperor

日本黑道
rì běn hēi dào

Yakuza (Japanese mafia)

精神日本人
jīng shén rì běn rén

(neologism) (derog.) Japanophile (esp. a Chinese admirer of WWII-era Japan)

追本溯源
zhuī běn sù yuán

to trace sth back to its origin

猫本
māo běn

Melbourne (slang alternative for 墨爾本|墨尔本[mò ěr běn])

沉没成本
chén mò chéng běn

sunk cost (economics)

基本完成
jī běn wán chéng

fundamentally complete

记事本
jì shì běn

notebook

快乐大本营
kuài lè dà běn yíng

Happy Camp (PRC TV series)

本相
běn xiàng

original form

本身
běn shēn
本市
běn shì

this city

本性
běn xìng
手抄本
shǒu chāo běn

manuscript copy of a book (before the printing press)

回本
huí běn

to recoup one's investment

练习本
liàn xí běn

exercise book

原本
yuán běn

originally

新修本草
xīn xiū běn cǎo

Tang dynasty compendium of herbal medicine

日本天皇
rì běn tiān huáng

Emperor of Japan

资本主义
zī běn zhǔ yì

capitalism

银本位制
yín běn wèi zhì

Silver Standard (monetary standard)

唱本
chàng běn

opera libretto

基本法
jī běn fǎ

basic law (constitutional document)

日本柳莺
rì běn liǔ yīng

(bird species of China) Japanese leaf warbler (Phylloscopus xanthodryas)

本位
běn wèi

standard

有本事
yǒu běn shi

to have what it takes

日本松雀鹰
rì běn sōng què yīng

(bird species of China) Japanese sparrowhawk (Accipiter gularis)

足本
zú běn

unabridged

节略本
jié lüe4 běn

abridged version

推本溯源
tuī běn sù yuán

to go back to the source

本字
běn zì

original form of a Chinese character

本益比
běn yì bǐ

P⁄E ratio (price-to-earnings ratio)

本帮菜
běn bāng cài

Shanghainese food

日本原子能研究所
rì běn yuán zǐ néng yán jiū suǒ

Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute

本杰明
běn jié míng

Benjamin (person name)

生产成本
shēng chǎn chéng běn

production costs

几何原本
jǐ hé yuán běn

Euclid's Elements

本处
běn chù

here

基本词汇
jī běn cí huì

basic word

本台
běn tái

this radio station

交粮本
jiāo liáng běn

to hand in one's ration cards

根本
gēn běn

fundamental

变本加厉
biàn běn jiā lì

lit. change to more severe (idiom); to become more intense (esp. of shortcoming)

赫本
hè běn

Hepburn (name)

模式标本
mó shì biāo běn

type specimen (used to define a species)

标本虫
biāo běn chóng

spider beetle

日本歌鸲
rì běn gē qú

(bird species of China) Japanese robin (Larvivora akahige)

大学本科
dà xué běn kē

university undergraduate course

脚本
jiǎo běn

script

折本
shé běn

a loss

吉本斯
jí běn sī

Gibbons (name)

历史成本
lì shǐ chéng běn

historic cost (accounting)

本因坊
běn yīn fāng

Honinbo, major school of Go in Japan (1612-1940)

一本万利
yī běn wàn lì

small capital, huge profit (idiom); to put in a little and get a lot out

本州
běn zhōu

Honshū, the main island of Japan

本分
běn fèn

(to play) one's part

本部
běn bù

headquarters

日本脑炎
rì běn nǎo yán

Japanese encephalitis

日本刀
rì běn dāo

Japanese sword

本乡
běn xiāng

home village

本位号
běn wèi hào

(music notation) natural sign, ♮

日本鹡鸰
rì běn jí líng

(bird species of China) Japanese wagtail (Motacilla grandis)

原原本本
yuán yuán běn běn

from beginning to end

总成本
zǒng chéng běn

total costs

本经
běn jīng

classic book

人之初,性本善
rén zhī chū , xìng běn shàn

man at birth is fundamentally good in nature (the first two lines of Three Character Classic 三字經|三字经[sān zì jīng])

本科
běn kē
成本
chéng běn

(manufacturing, production etc) costs

本日
běn rì

today

日本鹌鹑
rì běn ān chún

(bird species of China) Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica)

基本原理
jī běn yuán lǐ

fundamental principle

日本银行
rì běn yín háng

Bank of Japan

日本竹筷
rì běn zhú kuài

disposable chopsticks

日本国志
rì běn guó zhì

A Record of Japan, by Huang Zunxian 黃遵憲|黄遵宪[huáng zūn xiàn], an extended analysis of Meiji Japan

本底计数
běn dǐ jì shù

background count

资本论
zī běn lùn

Das Kapital (1867) by Karl Marx 卡爾·馬克思|卡尔·马克思[kǎ ěr · mǎ kè sī]

本地化
běn dì huà

localization

基本单位
jī běn dān wèi

basic unit

复本
fù běn

copy

机会成本
jī huì chéng běn

opportunity cost

本报
běn bào

this newspaper

传本
chuán běn

edition (of a book) currently in circulation

教本
jiào běn

textbook

本溪县
běn xī xiàn

Benxi Manchu autonomous county in Benxi 本溪, Liaoning

本溪满族自治县
běn xī mǎn zú zì zhì xiàn

Benxi Manchu autonomous county in Benxi 本溪, Liaoning

有本钱
yǒu běn qián

to be in a position to (take on a challenge, etc)

文本编辑器
wén běn biān jí qì

text editor

基本定理
jī běn dìng lǐ

fundamental theorem

本家
běn jiā

a member of the same clan

木本植物
mù běn zhí wù

woody plant

叔本华
shū běn huá

Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860), German post-Kantian philosopher

江山易改,本性难移
jiāng shān yì gǎi , běn xìng nán yí

it is easier to change mountains and rivers than to alter one's character (idiom)

本本
běn běn

notebook computer (diminutive)

本文
běn wén

this text

资本
zī běn

capital (economics)

代数基本定理
dài shù jī běn dìng lǐ

fundamental theorem of algebra

禾本科
hé běn kē

Graminae or Poaceae, the grass family

亏本出售
kuī běn chū shòu

to sell at a loss

基本多文种平面
jī běn duō wén zhǒng píng miàn

basic multilingual plane (BMP)

本俸
běn fèng

basic salary

布莱克本
bù lái kè běn

Blackburn

本溪市
běn xī shì

Benxi prefecture-level city in Liaoning province 遼寧省|辽宁省[liáo níng shěng] in northeast China

本溪
běn xī

Benxi prefecture-level city in Liaoning province 遼寧省|辽宁省[liáo níng shěng] in northeast China

抄本
chāo běn

handwritten copy

洁本
jié běn

expurgated edition

本尊
běn zūn

(Buddhism) yidam (one's chosen meditational deity)

本名
běn míng

original name

哥本哈根
gē běn hā gēn

Copenhagen or København, capital of Denmark

连本带利
lián běn dài lì

both principal and interest

股本回报率
gǔ běn huí bào lǜ

return on equity (ROE)

笔记本电脑
bǐ jì běn diàn nǎo

laptop

本那比
běn nà bǐ

see 本那比市[běn nà bǐ shì]

赔本
péi běn

loss

正模标本
zhèng mó biāo běn

holotype

本性难移
běn xìng nán yí

It is hard to change one's essential nature (idiom). You can't change who you are.

藁本
gǎo běn

Ligusticum levisticum (Chinese lovage root)

考本
kǎo běn

to take a relevant exam for a certificate (e.g. driving test, license etc)

超文本标记语言
chāo wén běn biāo jì yǔ yán

hypertext markup language

本质
běn zhì
赵本山
zhào běn shān

Zhao Benshan (1958-), universally known PRC TV comedian

节本
jié běn

abridged version

本罪
běn zuì

actual sin (Christian notion, as opposed to original sin 原罪)

高本汉
gāo běn hàn

Bernhard Karlgren (1889-1978), distinguished Swedish linguist and sinologist

本省人
běn shěng rén

people of this province

本岛
běn dǎo

main island

实缴资本
shí jiǎo zī běn

paid-in capital

译本
yì běn

translation (translated version of a text)

神农本草经
shén nóng běn cǎo jīng

Shennong's Compendium of Materia Medica, a Han dynasty pharmacological compendium, 3 scrolls

约翰·本仁
yuē hàn · běn rén

John Bunyan (1628-1688), English puritan writer, author of Pilgrim's Progress 天路歷程|天路历程

本月
běn yuè

this month

格林尼治本初子午线
gé lín ní zhì běn chū zǐ wǔ xiàn

the Greenwich meridian

本底辐射
běn dǐ fú shè

background radiation

资本计提
zī běn jì tí

capital requirement

基本功
jī běn gōng

basic skills

加工成本
jiā gōng chéng běn

processing cost

本底
běn dǐ

background

凭本能做事
píng běn néng zuò shì

to follow one's nose

富文本
fù wén běn

rich text (computing)

基本
jī běn

basic

本杰明·富兰克林
běn jié míng · fù lán kè lín

Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), American writer, scientist, inventor, politician and diplomat

大本涅盘经
dà běn niè pán jīng

the great Nirvana sutra: every living thing has Buddha nature.

慈悲为本
cí bēi wéi běn

mercy as the guiding principle (idiom); the Buddhist teaching that nothing is valid except compassion

笔记本计算机
bǐ jì běn jì suàn jī

laptop

日本书纪
rì běn shū jì

Nihonshoki or Chronicles of Japan (c. 720) book of mythology and history

裙带资本主义
qún dài zī běn zhǔ yì

crony capitalism

根本法
gēn běn fǎ

fundamental law

留言本
liú yán běn

guestbook

本命年
běn mìng nián

year of one's birth sign, according to the cycle of 12 animals of the earthly branches 地支[dì zhī]

杜本内
dù běn nèi

Dubonnet (name)

股本
gǔ běn

capital stock

本位货币
běn wèi huò bì

local currency

本钱
běn qián
选本
xuǎn běn

anthology

缩印本
suō yìn běn

compact edition (of a dictionary etc)

追本穷源
zhuī běn qióng yuán

see 追本溯源[zhuī běn sù yuán]

本票
běn piào

cashier's check

保本
bǎo běn

to break even

田格本
tián gé běn

exercise book for practicing Chinese character handwriting (each page being a grid of blank cells divided into quadrants, like the character 田)

刻本
kè běn

block printed edition

本本分分
běn běn fèn fèn

decorous

本士
běn shì

(loanword) pence

本垒
běn lěi

(baseball) home base; home plate

开本
kāi běn

book format, similar to in-4°, in-8° etc (a 16-kai format 16開|16开[shí liù kāi] is roughly A4)

本行
běn háng

one's line

本义
běn yì

original meaning

本来面目
běn lái miàn mù

true colors

本埠
běn bù

this city

以本人名
yǐ běn rén míng

under one's own name

绘本
huì běn

picture book

超文本传输协定
chāo wén běn chuán shū xié dìng

hypertext transfer protocol

大本营
dà běn yíng

headquarters

合订本
hé dìng běn

bound volume

不惜血本
bù xī xuè běn

to spare no effort

基本利率
jī běn lì lǜ

base rate (e.g. interest rate set by central bank)

本事
běn shi

ability

版本
bǎn běn

version

袖珍本
xiù zhēn běn

pocket book

微积分基本定理
wēi jī fēn jī běn dìng lǐ

fundamental theorem of calculus

正型标本
zhèng xíng biāo běn

holotype

本应
běn yīng

should have; ought to have

香港基本法
xiāng gǎng jī běn fǎ

Hong Kong Basic Law (in effect since the resumption of Chinese sovereignty in 1997)

藤本植物
téng běn zhí wù

vine plant

治本
zhì běn

to tackle a problem at its root; to effect a permanent solution (contrasted with 治標|治标[zhì biāo])

本质上
běn zhì shàng

essentially

日本
rì běn

Japan

正常成本
zhèng cháng chéng běn

normal cost (accountancy)

本期
běn qī
本位主义
běn wèi zhǔ yì

selfish departmentalism

日记本
rì jì běn

diary (book)

代数学基本定理
dài shù xué jī běn dìng lǐ

fundamental theorem of algebra (every polynomial has a complex root)

日本米酒
rì běn mǐ jiǔ

Japanese rice wine

一本正经
yī běn zhèng jīng

in deadly earnest; deadpan

日本沼虾
rì běn zhǎo xiā

oriental river prawn (Macrobrachium nipponense), a species of freshwater shrimp, also called 青蝦|青虾[qīng xiā]

小日本
xiǎo rì běn

(derog.) Japanese person

本着
běn zhe
本地管理界面
běn dì guǎn lǐ jiè miàn

LMI

本人
běn rén

I; me; myself

身体是革命的本钱
shēn tǐ shì gé mìng de běn qián

lit. the body is the revolution's capital

简本
jiǎn běn

concise edition

标本
biāo běn

specimen; sample

日本人
rì běn rén

Japanese person or people

本末
běn mò

the whole course of an event from beginning to end

电影剧本
diàn yǐng jù běn

screenplay

够本
gòu běn

to break even

认缴资本
rèn jiǎo zī běn

subscribed capital (finance)

商业版本
shāng yè bǎn běn

commercial version (of software)

本生灯
běn shēng dēng

Bunsen burner

本因坊秀策
běn yīn fāng xiù cè

Honinbo Shusaku (1829-1862), Japanese Go player

桥本龙太郎
qiáo běn lóng tài láng

HASHIMOTO Ryūtarō (1937-2006), Japanese politician, prime minister 1996-1998

本源
běn yuán

origin

基本盘
jī běn pán

(political party's) voter base

本本主义
běn běn zhǔ yì

book worship

本职
běn zhí

one's job

基本粒子
jī běn lì zǐ

elementary particle (particle physics)

本来
běn lái

original

本影
běn yǐng

umbra

日本共同社
rì běn gòng tóng shè

Kyōdō, Japanese news agency

修订本
xiū dìng běn

revised edition (of a book)

繁本
fán běn

detailed edition

对本
duì běn

(a return) equal to the capital

翻本
fān běn

to win back one's money (gambling etc)

本末倒置
běn mò dào zhì

lit. to invert root and branch (idiom); fig. confusing cause and effect

报本反始
bào běn fǎn shǐ

ensure that you pay debts of gratitude (idiom)

印本
yìn běn

printed book

本地人
běn dì rén

native person (of a country)

本征值
běn zhēng zhí

eigenvalue (math.)

话本
huà běn

Song and Yuan literary form based on vernacular folk stories

缀字课本
zhuì zì kè běn

spelling book

本·拉登
běn · lā dēng

Osama bin Laden (1957-2011), leader of Al Qaeda

老本
lǎo běn

capital

文本框
wén běn kuàng

text box (computing)

草本植物
cǎo běn zhí wù

herbaceous plant

基本上
jī běn shang

basically

本固枝荣
běn gù zhī róng

when the root is firm, the branches flourish

本币
běn bì

local currency

本题
běn tí

the subject under discussion

本科生
běn kē shēng

undergraduate student

本族语
běn zú yǔ

native language

本领
běn lǐng
日本经济新闻
rì běn jīng jì xīn wén

Nikkei Shimbun, Japanese equivalent of Financial Times

本能
běn néng
血本
xuè běn

hard-earned capital

单行本
dān xíng běn

single volume edition

样本
yàng běn

sample; specimen

上网本
shàng wǎng běn

netbook

蓝本
lán běn

blueprint

本征向量
běn zhēng xiàng liàng

eigenvector (math.)

本届
běn jiè

current

院本
yuàn běn

script for opera (esp. in Yuan times)

正本
zhèng běn

original (of a document)

基本原则
jī běn yuán zé

fundamental doctrine

不变资本
bù biàn zī běn

constant capital

本土
běn tǔ

one's native country

助人为快乐之本
zhù rén wéi kuài lè zhī běn

pleasure from helping others

大本钟
dà běn zhōng

Big Ben

本利
běn lì

principal and interest

本位制
běn wèi zhì

monetary standard

资本外逃
zī běn wài táo

outflow of capital

三句话不离本行
sān jù huà bù lí běn háng

to talk shop all the time (idiom)

历史版本
lì shǐ bǎn běn

historical version; a previous version (of an app, document etc)

基本概念
jī běn gài niàn

basic concept

本土派
běn tǔ pài

local faction

本国
běn guó

one's own country

血本无归
xuè běn wú guī

(idiom) to lose everything one invested; to lose one's shirt

人民基本权利
rén mín jī běn quán lì

fundamental civil rights

账本
zhàng běn

account book

超文本
chāo wén běn

hypertext

户口本
hù kǒu běn

residence certificate

本地
běn dì

local

本色
běn shǎi

natural color

剧本杀
jù běn shā

murder mystery game (role-playing game)

本垒打
běn lěi dǎ

home run (baseball)

全本
quán běn

whole edition

秘本
mì běn

a treasured rare book

范本
fàn běn

model (example worthy of being imitated)

墨尔本
mò ěr běn

Melbourne, Australia

实收资本
shí shōu zī běn

paid-in capital

外国资本
wài guó zī běn

foreign capital

平装本
píng zhuāng běn

paperback (book)

善本
shàn běn

good book

资本家
zī běn jiā

capitalist

本田
běn tián

Honda (Japanese name)

股本金比率
gǔ běn jīn bǐ lǜ

equity ratio

残本
cán běn

extant fragment (of book)

第一基本形式
dì yī jī běn xíng shì

(math.) first fundamental form

本茨
běn cí

Benz (name)

文本
wén běn

a text (article, script, contract etc)

资本储备
zī běn chǔ bèi

capital reserve

忘本
wàng běn

to forget one's roots

小本
xiǎo běn

small capital

本尼迪
běn ní dí

Benedictus

本土化
běn tǔ huà

to localize

治标不治本
zhì biāo bù zhì běn

to treat the symptoms but not the root cause

亏本
kuī běn

to make a loss

超文本传送协议
chāo wén běn chuán sòng xié yì

hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP)

熊本
xióng běn

Kumamoto city and prefecture in west Kyūshū 九州, Japan

本业
běn yè

business in which a company has traditionally engaged (e.g. before diversifying)

扳本
bān běn

to recoup losses (in gambling)

本笃十六世
běn dǔ shí liù shì

Pope Benedict XVI, original name Joseph Alois Ratzinger (1927-), pope 2005-2013

本那比市
běn nà bǐ shì

Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada

勤俭为服务之本
qín jiǎn wéi fú wù zhī běn

hardwork and thriftiness are the foundations of service (idiom)

平均成本法
píng jūn chéng běn fǎ

(finance) dollar cost averaging

卖本事
mài běn shì

to flaunt a skill

笔记本
bǐ jì běn

notebook (stationery)

试用本
shì yòng běn

inspection copy (of a textbook etc)

本体论
běn tǐ lùn

ontology

山本五十六
shān běn wǔ shí liù

YAMAMOTO Isoroku (1884-1943), Japanese admiral

本事
běn shì

source material

本体
běn tǐ

main part

本草
běn cǎo

a book on Chinese (herbal) medicine

本子
běn zi

book

课本
kè běn

textbook

日本学
rì běn xué

Japanology

电话本
diàn huà běn

telephone contact notebook; address book

本小利微
běn xiǎo lì wēi

(of a small business) to have very little capital and very modest profits

银本位
yín běn wèi

Silver Standard (monetary standard)

书本
shū běn

book

本朝
běn cháo

the current dynasty

日本海
rì běn hǎi

Sea of Japan

本位音
běn wèi yīn

(music) natural note

纯文本
chún wén běn

plain text (computing)

剧本
jù běn

script for play, opera, movie etc

增订本
zēng dìng běn

revised and enlarged edition

本年度
běn nián dù

this year

舍本逐末
shě běn zhú mò

to neglect the root and pursue the tip (idiom)

读本
dú běn

reader

它本身
tā běn shēn

itself

本色
běn sè

inherent qualities

里斯本
lǐ sī běn

Lisbon, capital of Portugal

日本树莺
rì běn shù yīng

(bird species of China) Japanese bush warbler (Cettia diphone)

生词本
shēng cí běn

vocabulary notebook

本意
běn yì